14 DAY TRIAL // A man suffering from a condition that covers his entire body in large growths similar to boils has received an embrace from Pope Francis.
The Pope's gesture has made waves on social media, where he is already regarded as a pontiff of the people.
He has been compared to Saint Francis of Assisi, who hugged a leper and allegedly healed him. The ill man turned up at the People's General Audience in Vatican City, in Saint Peter's Square.
He reached out to the Pope and had him touch his face in a generous embrace. He suffers from neurofibromatosis, which can lead to tumors and impaired vision as well as cut his life short, Washington Post informs.
Unlike leprosy, the condition is genetic and it is not transmissible, so Pope Francis was not exactly in the same danger that Saint Francis was in.