Many and fanciful have been the explanations of the Holy Father’s intentions in refusing those paying homage to the Holy See to kiss his ring. The video showing his (rather abrupt) attempts to evade the customary osculation has gone viral.

But the explanation is probably more mundane than ideological. It is, surely, a simple matter of hygiene. Francis is afraid of catching something nasty, or of passing something nasty on. On the same grounds we can expect an imminent withdrawal of the chalice from the laity, or worse still, little individual glass cups.

In these days of antibiotic anxiety, you cannot be too careful