At the first meeting I had with the (Italian) bishops in May 2013, one of the three things I said was: with the Italian government you're on your own. Because the pope is for everybody and he can't insert himself in the specific internal politics of a country. This is not the role of the pope, right?

Jesus understands our weaknesses and sins; and he forgives us if we allow ourselves to be forgiven.

May the Santo Niño continue to bless the Philippines and may he sustain the Christians of this great nation in their vocation to be witnesses and missionaries of the joy of the Gospel, in Asia and in the whole world.

Jesus on the cross feels the whole weight of the evil, and with the force of God's love he conquers it; he defeats it with his resurrection. This is the good that Jesus does for us on the throne of the cross. Christ's cross, embraced with love, never leads to sadness, but to joy, to the joy of having been saved and of doing a little of what he did on the day of his death.

We don't need youth museums but we do need holy young people.

And with a little sense of humor we can say that there are Christian bats who prefer the shadows to the light of the presence of the Lord.

Human life must always be defended from its beginning in the womb and must be recognised as a gift of God that guarantees the future of humanity.