Pope Francis swapped the Good Book for the Jungle Book.

The pontiff pawed a tiger from a traveling animal show Thursday as the Vatican’s Paul VI audience hall was converted into the Circus Maximus for a ceremony paying homage to clowns, musicians and other big-top workers.

The tiger brought a smile to the pope’s face as it stalked across the marble floor on a leash in front of hundreds of onlookers, and guzzled milk from a bottle. Francis also petted a panther cub.

The pope’s wild encounter came as he thanked the traveling circus performers for doing shows for “the poor and the homeless, prisoners and disadvantaged kids.”