The guards swore to protect the Pope's life by laying down their own if necessary in the ceremony which is held each year on May 6 to commemorate a bloody date in the history of the Swiss Guards when 147 of them died while protecting Pope Clement VII during the 1527 Sack of Rome.
Earlier Saturday, Pope Francis told the Guards they're called to "another sacrifice no less arduous" — serving the power of faith.
Their commander, Christoph Graf, also pointed to another weapon in the Swiss Guard armoury - the 'indestructible' rosary every man gets.
'There are two ways of defending the pope: with weapons and with faith,' said Graf, ahead of the swearing-in of the 40 guards (23 German-speaking Swiss, 13 French-speaking and four Italian-speaking).
The recruits, who enroll for at least two years, must be single, upstanding Swiss Catholic males younger than 30.Wearing blue-and-gold uniforms and holding halberds — spear-like weapons — they are a tourist delight while standing guard at Vatican ceremonies. Their main duty is to protect the pope.
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