Vatican Switchboard Inundated With Calls From Recruiters

ROME - As the Catholic community mourns the loss of Pope Francis, 88, on Easter Monday reports indicate that several recruitment agencies are attempting to capitalize on the situation.

One such individual is Lee Graves, 26, from Basildon, Essex, who reportedly sought to solicit the Vatican as a new client for his recruitment business, adding to the chaotic scenes in the wake of the Pope's death.

Graves, a recruitment specialist, told this publication, "I always check the news at weekends because successful people are 24/7. When I saw the Pope had died on my Instagram feed, I saw an opportunity."

When questioned about the Papal Conclave, the centuries-old process by which the College of Cardinals elects a new Pope, Lee dismissed the tradition, stating, "Conclave, schmonclave. Loads of my clients had their own internal recruiting team until I pitched them. I am also offering them an irresistible rate of 10% fee on base salary."

It appears the concept of the Pope renouncing a salary was lost on this recruitment specialist.

Our correspondent in Rome, Natalie, described the situation at the Vatican as "chaotic," noting, "The loss of the Pope this week has devastated this community, but the grieving is interrupted every other minute by the main phone ringing with another 'Pope specialist' recruitment business pitching their services."

Graves's efforts to secure the Vatican as a client seem to have been unsuccessful. "It hasn't gone well," he admitted at the end of the day. "The language barrier was a real issue. I lost patience and resorted to saying curriculum vitae over and over again, but it didn't help."

More to follow...