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

The pope zoned in forcefully on a central aspect of the life of the Roman Curia, the papal civil service.

The Holy See declared that it is closely monitoring what is happening to the church in China and asked for “positive signals” from Beijing.

The Spanish monsignor was condemned to 18 months in prison for his role in the leaking of Vatican financial documents.

Francis said that at his stage of life one has to move even faster.

Pope Francis celebrates his 80th birthday with the homeless and reflects on the wisdom of getting older.

This was only the second time in six years that President Santos and ex-President Uribe have met.

Francis has opted for men with broad experience and deep commitment in the social-justice field.

In his homily for the feast, Pope Francis denounced the exclusion of so many people “from the train of life.”

The pope appealed to Our Lady to teach people to care for others “without egoistic interests or hypocrisy.”