Summary
Zarathustra encounters a mysterious figure in black—the last pope on earth. This broken old man has spent his life serving God, only to discover that God has died. He's wandering the mountains, lost and purposeless, seeking the hermit saint who once lived in the forest. But when he found the hermit's cottage, only wolves remained, howling over their master's death. Now the pope seeks Zarathustra, calling him 'the most pious of all those who believe not in God.' Their conversation reveals a stunning truth: the pope, despite his lifetime of service, may be the most godless person alive. He confesses that God was flawed—secretive, contradictory, and ultimately weak. The old deity started harsh and vengeful, then became soft and pitying, finally suffocating on his own excessive sympathy for humanity. Zarathustra agrees that this God had to die, comparing him to a failed potter who blamed his creations instead of improving his craft. The pope recognizes something sacred in Zarathustra's very godlessness—a purity that his own compromised faith could never achieve. He asks to stay the night in Zarathustra's cave, sensing that this 'ungodly' man carries more genuine blessing than any traditional believer. This encounter shows how institutions and their representatives often outlive their purpose, and how honest questioning can be more spiritually authentic than inherited answers.
Coming Up in Chapter 67
Zarathustra continues his mountain journey, but his search for the 'higher men' takes an unexpected turn. Despite the difficult encounters he's had, his heart fills with gratitude for the strange wisdom these meetings have brought him.
Share it with friends
An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
Not long, however, after Zarathustra had freed himself from the magician, he again saw a person sitting beside the path which he followed, namely a tall, black man, with a haggard, pale countenance: THIS MAN grieved him exceedingly. “Alas,” said he to his heart, “there sitteth disguised affliction; methinketh he is of the type of the priests: what do THEY want in my domain? What! Hardly have I escaped from that magician, and must another necromancer again run across my path,— —Some sorcerer with laying-on-of-hands, some sombre wonder-worker by the grace of God, some anointed world-maligner, whom, may the devil take! But the devil is never at the place which would be his right place: he always cometh too late, that cursed dwarf and club-foot!”— Thus cursed Zarathustra impatiently in his heart, and considered how with averted look he might slip past the black man. But behold, it came about otherwise. For at the same moment had the sitting one already perceived him; and not unlike one whom an unexpected happiness overtaketh, he sprang to his feet, and went straight towards Zarathustra. “Whoever thou art, thou traveller,” said he, “help a strayed one, a seeker, an old man, who may here easily come to grief! The world here is strange to me, and remote; wild beasts also did I hear howling; and he who could have given me protection—he is himself no more. I was seeking the pious man, a saint and an anchorite, who, alone in his forest, had not yet heard of what all the world knoweth at present.” “WHAT doth all the world know at present?” asked Zarathustra. “Perhaps that the old God no longer liveth, in whom all the world once believed?” “Thou sayest it,” answered the old man sorrowfully. “And I served that old God until his last hour. Now, however, am I out of service, without master, and yet not free; likewise am I no longer merry even for an hour, except it be in recollections. Therefore did I ascend into these mountains, that I might finally have a festival for myself once more, as becometh an old pope and church-father: for know it, that I am the last pope!—a festival of pious recollections and divine services. Now, however, is he himself dead, the most pious of men, the saint in the forest, who praised his God constantly with singing and mumbling. He himself found I no longer when I found his cot—but two wolves found I therein, which howled on account of his death,—for all animals loved him. Then did I haste away. Had I thus come in vain into these forests and mountains? Then did my heart determine that I should seek another, the most pious of all those who believe not in God—, my heart determined that I should seek Zarathustra!” Thus spake the hoary man, and gazed with keen eyes at him who stood before him. Zarathustra however seized the hand of the old pope and regarded it a long...
Master this chapter. Complete your experience
Purchase the complete book to access all chapters and support classic literature
As an Amazon Associate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
Available in paperback, hardcover, and e-book formats
Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Institutional Outliving
When people become so identified with failing institutions that they cannot see clearly or leave, even when staying serves no real purpose.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to spot when organizations have abandoned their stated purpose while their most loyal members remain trapped by sunk-cost thinking.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when someone defends a workplace, organization, or tradition by citing what it used to stand for rather than what it actually does now.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Pope
The head of the Catholic Church, considered God's representative on Earth. In this chapter, Nietzsche presents 'the last pope' - a man whose entire identity was built around serving a God who no longer exists. This represents how institutions can outlive their purpose.
Modern Usage:
We see this when long-time employees struggle after their company shuts down, or when people define themselves entirely by roles that become obsolete.
Anchorite
A religious hermit who withdraws from the world to focus entirely on spiritual matters. The pope is searching for one such holy man, only to find he's already dead. This shows how traditional sources of spiritual guidance are disappearing.
Modern Usage:
Today's equivalent might be seeking out that wise mentor or guru, only to find they've moved on or aren't what you expected.
Necromancer
Someone who claims to communicate with the dead or work dark magic. Zarathustra uses this term to describe religious figures who he sees as manipulating people with false promises and outdated beliefs.
Modern Usage:
We use this concept when describing people who profit from others' desperation - psychics, scam artists, or anyone selling false hope.
The Death of God
Nietzsche's famous concept that traditional religious belief has lost its power in modern society. It's not that God literally died, but that the old certainties and moral frameworks no longer work for thinking people.
Modern Usage:
This shows up when institutions we once trusted completely - government, media, corporations - lose their authority and we have to figure things out ourselves.
Divine Pity
The idea that God became too soft and sympathetic, ultimately dying from excessive compassion for human suffering. The pope suggests that God's pity made him weak and ineffective.
Modern Usage:
We see this in leaders or parents who become so permissive and understanding that they lose all authority and effectiveness.
Sacred Blasphemy
The paradox that honest questioning and rejection of false beliefs can be more spiritually pure than blind faith. The pope recognizes Zarathustra's godlessness as somehow more blessed than traditional piety.
Modern Usage:
This appears when someone who asks hard questions and challenges the system shows more integrity than those who just go along with things.
Characters in This Chapter
Zarathustra
Protagonist and philosophical teacher
He encounters the pope with suspicion but engages in honest dialogue about the death of God. His 'godlessness' is revealed to be more spiritually authentic than traditional faith. He provides shelter and understanding to the broken religious figure.
Modern Equivalent:
The honest skeptic who questions everything but shows more genuine compassion than the true believers
The Last Pope
Tragic figure representing dying institutions
This old man has lost everything that gave his life meaning - his God is dead, his purpose is gone, and he's wandering lost in the mountains. Despite a lifetime of service, he admits to being perhaps the most godless person alive. He recognizes truth in Zarathustra's rejection of false beliefs.
Modern Equivalent:
The long-time company man whose corporation goes bankrupt, leaving him questioning everything he believed in
The Dead Hermit
Absent spiritual authority
Though dead, this saint represents the old sources of wisdom that are no longer available. The pope sought him for guidance, but found only wolves howling over his remains. This symbolizes how traditional spiritual authorities have vanished.
Modern Equivalent:
The wise mentor or teacher you wanted to learn from, but they've already passed away or moved on
God (as described by the Pope)
Deceased deity
Portrayed as flawed and contradictory - starting harsh and vengeful, then becoming overly soft and pitying. The pope describes God as dying from his own excessive sympathy for humanity, unable to bear witnessing human suffering.
Modern Equivalent:
The ineffective leader who tries to please everyone and ends up helping no one
Key Quotes & Analysis
"I was seeking the pious man, a saint and an anchorite, who, alone in his forest, had not yet heard of what all the world knoweth at present."
Context: The pope explains why he's wandering in the mountains, looking for someone who doesn't know that God is dead.
This reveals how some people desperately seek those who still believe the old truths, hoping to find comfort in ignorance. The pope wants to find someone who hasn't faced the reality that's destroying him.
In Today's Words:
I was looking for someone who still believed in the old ways, someone who hadn't heard the bad news yet.
"Thou art the most pious of all those who believe not in God."
Context: The pope recognizes something sacred in Zarathustra's honest rejection of false beliefs.
This paradox suggests that honest questioning can be more spiritually authentic than blind faith. The pope sees that Zarathustra's 'godlessness' contains more truth and integrity than traditional piety.
In Today's Words:
You're more genuinely spiritual than any of us believers because you're actually honest about what you think.
"He hath become old and soft and mellow and pitiful, more like a grandfather than a father, but most like a tottering old grandmother."
Context: Describing how God became weak through excessive pity and sympathy.
This shows how the pope sees God's downfall - not through cruelty, but through becoming too soft and permissive. The imagery of a 'tottering grandmother' suggests complete loss of authority and strength.
In Today's Words:
He got old and went soft, more like a pushover grandparent than someone with any real authority.
Thematic Threads
Identity
In This Chapter
The pope's entire identity was built on serving God, leaving him lost when that purpose dies
Development
Continues Zarathustra's exploration of self-creation versus inherited roles
In Your Life:
You might recognize this when your job title or family role becomes more important than what you actually contribute
Institutional Decay
In This Chapter
Both the church and the hermit saint have died, leaving only empty forms and confused followers
Development
Introduced here as a major theme about outdated systems
In Your Life:
You see this when organizations you once respected prioritize self-preservation over their original mission
Honest Questioning
In This Chapter
Zarathustra's godlessness is more spiritually pure than the pope's compromised faith
Development
Builds on earlier themes about the courage to reject inherited answers
In Your Life:
You experience this when asking difficult questions feels more authentic than accepting comfortable lies
Sacred Contradiction
In This Chapter
The pope finds blessing in Zarathustra's rejection of everything the pope represents
Development
Continues the theme that truth often appears opposite to expectations
In Your Life:
You might find that people who challenge your beliefs teach you more than those who simply agree
Purposeless Wandering
In This Chapter
The pope wanders the mountains seeking meaning after his life's work became meaningless
Development
Echoes earlier themes about the disorientation that follows rejected certainties
In Your Life:
You feel this when major life changes leave you unsure of your next steps or core values
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Why is the pope called the 'last pope on earth,' and what has he discovered about the God he served his whole life?
analysis • surface - 2
The pope says Zarathustra is 'the most pious of all those who believe not in God.' What does he mean by this apparent contradiction?
analysis • medium - 3
Think about your workplace, community organization, or family traditions. Where do you see people going through motions even though the original purpose has died or changed?
application • medium - 4
The pope invested his entire identity in serving God, then discovered God was flawed. How do you maintain your sense of self when something you've built your life around disappoints you?
application • deep - 5
Why might honest questioning be more spiritually authentic than inherited answers, and what does this reveal about the difference between loyalty and wisdom?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Audit Your Commitments
List three major commitments in your life - your job, a relationship, an organization, or a belief system. For each one, write down: What was the original purpose? What is the current reality? Are you staying out of genuine belief or just habit? This isn't about making dramatic changes, but about honest assessment.
Consider:
- •Consider whether your loyalty serves the original mission or just maintains the status quo
- •Think about what you might be avoiding by not examining these commitments closely
- •Ask yourself who you would be if you stepped away from commitments that no longer serve their purpose
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you realized something you believed in or committed to had changed or failed. How did you handle the gap between your investment and the reality? What did you learn about the difference between loyalty and wisdom?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 67: The Ugliest Man's Confession
The coming pages reveal shame can drive people to destructive acts, and teach us pity can sometimes be more harmful than helpful. These discoveries help us navigate similar situations in our own lives.