More popish than the Pope

[Johnyxxx]

Hello,

Is the idiom to be more popish than the Pope common in English?

Thanks a lot.

 

[Skrej]

I wouldn't say that exact expression is common, but the construction of "more X than X" is somewhat common in AmE, where X is the same person, quality, or even institution. Usually X is somebody or something well known for a certain quality.

It means that the person or thing at the beginning of the sentence exudes even more of the quality that the person or institution know for that quality has.

So in this case, somebody is better at exhibiting Popish (I guess you capitalize a theoretical proper adjective) qualities (whatever those are perceived to be) than the Pope himself.

 

[SoothingDave]

I have only seen "Popish" used in a pejorative sense. I would avoid it.

 

[Rover_KE]

The usual expression is more Catholic than the Pope.

 

[Tdol]

And that is still far less common than Is the Pope Catholic?, used when someone says something very obvious.

 

[GoesStation]

I usually ask an irreverent question about what the Pope does in the woods.

 

[Tdol]

And whether bears are Catholic. ;-)

 

[Skrej]

So do Catholic bears take mass defecations in the woods? :-?