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Pope Francis: Missionaries share joy, not rules

THA KHAM, Thailand -- In a large, predominantly Catholic village outside Bangkok, tens of thousands of people lined the roads and filled the grounds of a church complex to greet Pope Francis.

Pope Francis: Migration is a principal moral issue today

BANGKOK -- Calling migration "one of the principal moral issues" facing humanity today, Pope Francis thanked the government and people of Thailand for the way they've welcomed migrants and refugees, but he urged greater efforts to protect migrants and poor Thais from human trafficking.

Vatican advocates for two states in Holy Land amid U.S. reversal

VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican reiterated its call for a two-state solution in the Holy Land after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the United States would no longer recognize the illegality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Pope Francis prays for Vietnamese migrants found dead in U.K.

VATICAN CITY -- In a message to young Catholics in Vietnam, Pope Francis offered prayers for a group of Vietnamese migrants who died while being smuggled into Great Britain in late October.

Pope Francis warmly welcomed to Thailand

BANGKOK -- Arriving in Thailand after an 11-hour flight, Pope Francis was greeted by 11 children -- one for each of the country's dioceses.

More must be done to include women in church bodies, Pope Francis says

VATICAN CITY -- Although people may have different ways of praying or of serving their parish or the poor, the Catholic Church needs laity, priests, religious, parishes and lay movements to collaborate in order to be truly "catholic," Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis blesses hands of doctors, nurses at pediatric hospital

VATICAN CITY -- The pained faces of children with serious medical conditions and the suffering of their families should inspire doctors and nurses to serve with passion and enthusiasm, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis: Each Christian should have a friend who is poor

VATICAN CITY -- The poor are the church's treasure because they give every Christian a chance to "speak the same language as Jesus, that of love," Pope Francis said, celebrating Mass for the World Day of the Poor.

Pope Francis' cousin, missionary in Thailand, will serve as his translator

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis' translator in Thailand will be someone familiar with the nuances and colloquialisms of his Argentine Spanish because she grew up speaking it with him.

Catechism will be updated to include ecological sins, Pope Francis says

VATICAN CITY -- Following through on a proposal made at the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon, Pope Francis said there are plans to include a definition of ecological sins in the church's official teaching.

Pope Francis appoints Spanish Jesuit to lead Secretariat for the Economy

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis tapped a Spanish Jesuit priest with a background in economics to head the Vatican Secretariat for the Economy.