Pope Francis calls out nuns with 'vinegar faces': Pontiff tells sisters to be more friendly and avoid gossip

Published: 01:10 GMT, 6 January 2025 | Updated: 02:25 GMT, 6 January 2025

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Pope Francis has called out nuns with 'vinegar faces' and told them to avoid gossip in a bizarre tirade.

The pope, 88, urged a group of Dominican nuns from the Union of St Catherine of Siena of the Missionaries to 'distance' themselves from tales.

'Gossip kills, gossip poisons. Please, no gossiping among you, none. And to ask this of a woman is heroic but, come on, let's move forward and no gossip', he said in one of his off-the-cuff speeches that are fast becoming part and parcel of his papacy.

'That's not something that helps to attract people. Vinegar is nasty and nuns with a vinegar face, let's not even talk about it', he added.

Pope Francis, who became the leader of the Catholic church in 2013, also urged the nuns not to speak with the Devil.

'The Lord has shown us that he spoke with everyone, except … there was one person that the Lord never spoke with: the Devil.

'Please, speak with everyone except the Devil. The Devil enters the community, he sees the jealousies, all those things that belong to all humans, not just women, everyone, that's where the Devil goes. No dialogue with the Devil, understood? We don't speak with the Devil.'

He has long courted controversy - earlier this year, he was reported to have used derogatory language against gay people when talking about men training to be priests in seminaries.

Pope Francis speaks with nuns during the weekly general audience on June 22, 2022 at St. Peter's square in The Vatican

The pontiff, pictured in January 2023, has told nuns to 'avoid gossip'

The Vatican was forced to apologise for his use of the Italian term 'frociaggine', which translates to an offensive slur against gay people in a closed-door meeting.

The word choice shocked many, as he has long been a proponent of LGBTQ+ people being more and more involved in church life.

A priest, who declined to be named, told the Times: 'Pope Francis speaks like this, he is rough-spoken. It can be embarrassing and it could be getting more pronounced with age.

'First time round I think it was the Vatican press office issuing the apology rather than him.'

Roberta Vinerba, a Franciscan nun and theologian, said the Pope's tone was 'dry, direct, colloquial' but had the virtue of clarity, Vinerba said.

'It's an invitation that he extends to everyone — show a serene face, a smiling face, which doesn't necessarily mean that things are going well but expresses a hope, a certainty, the hope of being credible witnesses to the salvation that has come to us,' she said.

Pope Francis