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Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service

Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service

"Rushing" to open the diaconate to women in the Catholic Church would short-circuit a necessary reflection on the relationship between ordained ministry and charismatic leadership, particularly as it impacts the participation of women in the church, said the head of the Vatican's doctrinal office.

The Catholic Church cannot be credible in its mission of proclaiming Christ unless it acknowledges its mistakes and bends down "to heal the wounds we have caused by our sins," Pope Francis said.

Asked what a U.S. Catholic given a choice between voting for a person who supports abortion or one who supports closing borders and deporting migrants, Pope Francis said one must choose "the lesser evil."

The 87-year-old Pope Francis not only survived the longest trip of his pontificate, but he drew energy from the crowds who came to see him, and he seemed to enjoy his 12-day visit to Asia and the Pacific.

Arriving in Singapore from Timor-Leste, Pope Francis made the biggest transition of his 12-day trip to Asia and the Pacific, moving from one of the world's poorest countries to one of its wealthiest and from one of the most youthful to one of the oldest.

With a 21-cannon salute, Pope Francis was welcomed to Papua New Guinea Sept. 6, the second stop on his four-nation visit to Asia and the Pacific.

Not long after Pope Francis left Indonesia, authorities there announced they had arrested seven people for making online "terror threats" against the pope.

Politicians have an essential role in preserving the unity of a nation by working for the common good and promoting cooperation, especially when "the exasperation of contrasts" threatens to divide a country, Pope Francis told Indonesia leaders.

Pope Francis landed in Jakarta after a 13-hour flight from Rome and was greeted by the religious affairs minister of Indonesia and two children in traditional dress who offered him flowers.

"Please, let no Christian church be abolished directly or indirectly: the churches are not to be touched," Pope Francis said about a Ukrainian law banning the Russian Orthodox Church, which President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed Aug. 24, Ukrainian independence day.