“The Catholic Church could do things with political consequences if it coordinated with political leaders.”

The Holy Year of Mercy arrives in advance in this land that has suffered from war.

Today the pope opened the Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica, inaugurating the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

The pope's words come as the peace process to end a 45-year-old conflict between the government and separatist rebels seems to have stalled.

After Pope Francis opens the Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica on Dec. 8, the 50th anniversary of the closing of the Second Vatican Council, Holy Doors will be opened in all the cathedrals of the world on Dec. 13.

On the flight from Bangui to Rome, the pope addressed questions on COP21, Vatileaks, Islam

Pope Francis put peace and reconciliation in the CAR at the center of international attention by his visit here, during which he sought to create the conditions for this by, among other things, opening the Jubilee Year of Mercy in Bangui’s cathedral.

Pope Francis was given a tremendous welcome by tens of thousands of Central Africans when he arrived in this conflict-torn land.

On his last day in Uganda, he repeatedly urged Christians here to draw inspiration from their martyrs.

The pope noted that “the nation has been blessed in its people: its strong families, its young and its elderly.”