While Leo has drones form Francis’ face over a St. Peter’s rock concert, millions marched for Charlie Kirk. And in Germany, bishops called the Bible irrelevant and the priesthood open to women.
On Saturday night the Vatican turned itself into a concert hall. St. Peter’s Square was lit up not by candles or torches of penitents, but by drones choreographed into the face of Francis, leering above the basilica like a techno-idol. Down below, Pharrell Williams and John Legend crooned alongside the hip hop group Clipse, while Jelly Roll belted “Amazing Grace” with Andrea Bocelli, all of it broadcast by Disney+.
The event was called Grace for the World, but it was more like spectacle for the world. The Church of Human Fraternity unveiled itself fully: St. Peter’s transformed into a light show, the See of Rome conscripted into the service of pop culture, theology outsourced to entertainment. Pentecost once gave the world tongues of fire. Now the Vatican offers synchronized drones, programmed pixels in the night sky.
The message is unmistakable: this is not the Bride of Christ, but a franchise. The liturgy of salvation has been replaced with the liturgy of brand partnerships.
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