Two beggars are sitting side by side on a street in Rome.
One has a Cross in front of him. The other has a Star of David.
People pass by, look at both men, and repeatedly drop money into the hat of the beggar with the Cross while ignoring the other.
Eventually, the Pope happens to walk by. He watches for a while, then feels sorry for the beggar sitting beneath the Star of David.
Finally, he approaches him.
“My poor fellow, don’t you understand? This is Rome, the heart of Catholicism. People aren’t likely to give you money while you sit there with a Star of David, especially beside a man displaying a Cross. In fact, they may be giving him even more money simply out of spite.”
The beggar listens patiently, then smiles and turns to the man beside him.
“Moishe,” he says, “would you look at this? Someone’s trying to teach the Goldstein brothers about marketing.”
Explanation: The Cross represents Christianity, while the Star of David represents Judaism. Since Rome is strongly associated with Catholicism, people are expected to sympathize more with the beggar displaying the Cross and ignore the one displaying the Star of David. The Pope assumes the Jewish beggar needs advice because he is using the wrong religious symbol in Catholic Rome.
The twist is that this contrast is deliberate. The two beggars are supposedly brothers who use different symbols as a marketing strategy. The Cross attracts Catholic passersby, while the Star of David creates a visible contrast that makes the Cross seem even more deserving of donations.
