VATICAN – Naturally in a document on the Christian call to holiness, Pope Francis cited a heavenly host of saints – including some whose sainthood causes are ongoing and some who probably will never be canonized.

VATICAN – The Catholic Church wants to listen to young people and know where they are coming from, but young Catholics must be ready to listen to Jesus and discover where he wants to lead them, Pope Francis said.

VATICAN – God calls all Christians to be saints – not plastic statues of saints, but real people who make time for prayer and who show loving care for others in the simplest gestures, Pope Francis said in his new document on holiness.

VATICAN – Pope Francis condemned the use of chemical weapons after a deadly attack killed dozens of innocent men, women and children in Syria.

The Catholic relationship with Canada’s Indigenous peoples no doubt wobbled with the announcement that Pope Francis is not coming here to offer the apology so explicitly called for by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. After so much suffering, it could hardly be otherwise.

VATICAN – "Rejoice and Be Glad," Pope Francis' new apostolic exhortation on "the call to holiness in the modern world" will be released April 9, the Vatican announced.

ROME – Friends and fans called him a "gentle giant," a faithful "prayer warrior" and a Clark Kent whose superman power was helping people grow in holiness and faith.

VATICAN – The final words at Mass – "Go in peace" – are an invitation to Christians to proclaim God's blessings through their lives, not an opportunity to go outside and speak ill of others, Pope Francis said.

OTTAWA –  Assembly of First Nations Chief Perry Bellegarde wants a face-to-face meeting to ask Pope Francis to reconsider his rejection of a call to come to Canada to issue a formal apology to Indigenous peoples.

VATICAN – Easter is a feast that calls Christians to gather together, make a commitment to dialogue and to work for the common good, Pope Francis said.

VATICAN – In his Easter appeal for peace throughout the world, Pope Francis made special mention of the ongoing "carnage" in Syria and the recent violence along Israel's border with the Gaza Strip, violence the Pope said had not spared "the defenseless."

VATICAN – Easter makes it clear that in the life of Jesus, but also in the lives of modern men and women, "death, solitude and fear" do not have the last word, Pope Francis said before giving his Easter blessing.

VATICAN – During a customary visit to a prison on Holy Thursday, Pope Francis revealed that he has cataracts and is planning to have an eye operation to correct them next year.

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The head of Regina Coeli prison in Rome made a comment during the visit about the importance of being “far-sighted” about prisoners’ rehabilitation.

Pope Francis responded, “This is good. Because at my age, for example, cataracts arrive and one does not see reality well. Next year, we will have to have an operation.”

He encouraged the inmates to have clear eyes – what he called “cataract surgery for the soul” – in order to see and spread hope.

Cataracts, a clouding of the eye’s lens that is common as people age, is usually correctable with a routine surgery.

The pope, who turned 81 in December, maintains a rigorous schedule and still makes several international trips per year. He had a portion of one lung removed when he was young, due to an infection, but is considered to be in generally good health.

ROME – Leading a prayer to God for the grace to feel ashamed and repentant for so many sins in the world, Pope Francis highlighted the hope that always comes from Jesus.

ROME – Before washing the feet of 12 prisoners, Pope Francis told them and hundreds of inmates to remember that Jesus constantly stands before them with love, ready to cleanse their sins and forgive them.