They only wear those for ceremonial duties. the rest of the time they have either a military uniform they wear or they dress like U. S> Secret service agents.
I’m curious that so many seem to view them rather like Navy SEALs or the Israeli Mossad, an elite force, when the photos I’ve seen are pretty much teenaged boys, no sense of their being hardened or potentially lethal at all, they could be a marching band.
Is there a ceremonial group for the young and a defense group with older guards who have received extensive military training or something?
I’m obviously an outsider but that would unnerve me, seeing as how your Pope Francis appears to have become something of a polarizing figure fairly quickly. I don’t grasp all the uproar, the foot washing is a very appropriate, humbling gesture for a Christian in position of authority to me, so I approve of it. Then, there’s the whole Ann Barnhardt thing, I saw that thread, Catholics calling him satan for not genuflecting.
There’s cause for concern, imho. So, I hope you’re right.