It’s likely that the title of this article made you think you were going to learn something about what it’s like to play a game of chess with a pope. If you were from Iceland, you would know better. Að Tefla Við Páfann in Icelandic is translated to “playing chess with the pope.” The meaning, of course, is far from literal. What it really means is that you’re taking a well-earned dump. The origin is from the middle of the 18th century and was meant to disrespect the pope. That’s because Icelanders were predominantly Lutherans who were less than fond of Catholics. It’s just one “poophemism” among many: dropping the kids in the pool, pinching a loaf, delivering a load, and one of the strangest…….sending a fax to Cleveland.
