Pope Confirms Parking at a Meter without Payment to be a Sin

VATICAN CITY — In a meeting with an Italian citizen at St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis admits parking at a meter without payment to be a sin. “If taking a baker’s bread without paying is theft, the position of the church is that taking a city’s parking space and not paying is also theft,” said Pope Francis. Pope Francis has shown a preference for a simpler lifestyle and simpler cars. As a cardinal he often took public transport. On the night of his election he rode with the other cardinals in a minibus back to their hotel instead of using a papal limousine. He does however own or have access to several cars and has been spotted paying the meter in the past. A Freedom of Information Act request to the City of Rome found that Pope Francis did obtain a parking ticket in a Fiat 500L registered in his name near Centro Storico in May of 2019 to which the Pope responded, “I only parked for a few minutes to run a quick errand and they got me. That does not count as a sin.” The parking ticket was suspiciously voided the next day. At press time, City of Rome officials have yet to comment on the reason for the parking ticket being voided.