He prayed for people across the globe, and especially for the people of Aleppo.

“There are more martyrs in the world today than in the early centuries of Christianity,” Francis told thousands of pilgrims.

As the head of the Archdiocese of Brisbane on the east coast of Australia, the archbishop was a delegate to the meeting of the Synod of Bishops in Rome in 2015.

The Vatican on Dec. 7 declared that persons with 'homosexual tendencies' cannot be admitted to Catholic seminaries.

In an unexpected diplomatic initiative to consolidate the fragile peace accord in Colombia, Pope Francis on Dec. 14 brought together the country's president, Juan Manuel Santos, and his archrival, former president Senator Álvaro Uribe, a strong opponent of the accord.

Moving quickly to strengthen the Section for Refugees and Migrants in the new Vatican department for the Promotion of Integral Human Development, Pope Francis has appointed as under secretaries a Canadian Jesuit, Michael Czerny, and an Italian member of the Scalabrini Fathers, Fabio Baggio. The Vati