Pope Francis is not a fan of the cult of personality that has been generated round him over the last year.

“To depict the pope as sort of a superman, a sort of star, seems offensive to me,” Pope Francis said to an Italian newspaper.  “The pope is a man who laughs, cries, sleeps tranquilly and has friends like everyone else, a normal person.”

The Pope also said that despite the people who hailing him as a “superman” who will bring sweeping changes to the church, the positions of the church on issues such as contraception and prohibition of gay marriage will not change.

The Pope said changes would be coming in the area of transparency and responsibility within the church, especially on issues connected to abuse of children by church authorities.

Francis said that a synod of bishops will meet in October to work on how to take the church’s positions and make them more appealing to younger generations who believe the church has grown out of touch with the world.