Pope Francis received a custom Lamborghini Huracán in November 2017.
He blessed it, signed it, and sold it along through Sotheby’s for $950,000, donating all the proceeds to charity.
The funds were divided between four causes close to Francis’ heart:
- Rebuilding Christian communities in Iraq that had been destroyed by ISIS (Aid to the Church in Need)
- Helping women who were victims of human trafficking (The Pope John XXIII Community)
- Supporting medical care in Africa through a surgery-focused charity named GICAM
- And funding education and healthcare projects in the Central African Republic (Friends of Central Africa).
This was an act of charity done right — the Pope had sufficient prestige to exponentially increase the profits of a car he obviously had no intention of keeping.
For Lamborghini, it was good publicity and a way of creating a fundraiser in one go — though Lamborghini is, many say, notorious for its corrupt links with Italian police.
Still, this episode serves as an argument for why we still need a papal figure in a world increasingly disdainful for rites and rituals — there are a great many catholics around the world, and the Pope retains his clout and heavy influence.
Reportedly, upon being elected pope, Jose Mario Bergoglio told his family members not to travel to the Vatican and just stay in Buenos Aires to save money and continue to do God’s work instead.
