One day the Chief Rabbi and the Pope were stuck in a lift that had broken down. They waited what seemed like hours for recovery.
While they were waiting, they had a chat about life and religion and their differences. After a while having exhausted their polite chitchat the Pope asked the Chief Rabbi….
” Rabbi, as a man of the cloth, and I’ll keep this between us, can you honestly answer a question for me?”
” Certainly” replied the Rabbi, “provided you also answer truthfully a question I ask”
The Pope readily agreed to his request.
“Rabbi, tell me please, have you ever eaten Pork?”
Rather embarrassed the Rabbi replied “yes indeed I have”
’…and did you enjoy it?’ Asked the Pope
” Indeed, I did” replied the Rabbi, flushing deeply. “And now I have a question for you, and you must answer me truthfully as well”
” Please tell me, and remember to answer honestly now, have you ever had sex with a member of your congregation?”
The Pope was rather taken aback by this very personal question, after all he had taken a vow to be celibate and not get involved with the pleasures of the flesh. But he had already asked a delicate question of the Chief Rabbi and wasn’t going to go back in his word, and anyway they had both promised to keep their discussions a secret.
Haltingly, with his face going a deep crimson colour from his embarrassment the Pope said “yes I have, but please don’t tell anybody”
The Chief Rabbi then asked “and did you enjoy it?”
” Yes, I did “replied the Pope, hanging his head in shame
to which the Chief Rabbi said “I knew it. I just knew you were keeping a secret from the world” and then added,
“…. it’s a lot better than Pork, isn’t it?”