Francesco Lepore likes to challenge the status quo.

June 30, 2021 5:29 AM

"On a recent afternoon, over a lunch of arancine and cannoli in a Palermo apartment that he shares with his partner, Michele Nicolosi — an abundantly tattooed Italian post office employee with a similar beard, identical outfit and warm sense of humor — Mr. Lepore described a saga worthy of Stendhal." A Latin Expert’s Odyssey, From the Vatican to the Gay Rights Movement - Jason Horowitz, NYT Rome bureau chief. Archive link.
posted by hippybear (2 comments total)

This sounds like my dream job in many ways, though it proved otherwise for Mr Lepore. Also, I want to see that movie:

“He entered the Vatican at age 27 and found himself surrounded by eccentric co-workers. The late Rev. Reginald Foster, a beloved Latinist from Milwaukee, was called “the gas station attendant” for his cheap blue jackets. Another Latinist had dated the Italian poet and filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini in his youth before becoming a priest and had a habit of screaming profanities. Mr. Lepore was in heaven, and every day at 11, he would pause from writing texts for popes to take tea and chat in Latin with his co-workers.“
posted by Atrahasis at 1:02 PM on July 1, 2021

Super interesting article, thanks for sharing.
posted by ellieBOA at 7:33 AM on July 2, 2021