NATION/WORLD

Our Lady of Guadalupe is a message of "mestizaje," or a fusion of cultures that leads to an encounter between humanity and God, Pope Francis said.

Knowledge and "enlightenment" are needed especially where there is the "darkness of hatred," which often stems from forgetting and indifference, Pope Francis said.

Just days after Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, was sentenced to 26 years in prison, Pope Francis expressed concern over his condition.

The smiles, curiosity and boldness of several children with rare diseases who did not know about protocol at papal audiences and simply went up to Pope Francis and reached out for rosaries gave the grownups present a lesson, the pope said.

Religious rules are good and necessary, but Jesus wants his disciples to go beyond the letter of the law and fully live out its meaning, Pope Francis said.

Caring for the sick and suffering includes drawing attention to those who suffer in silence, struggling to find someone who will acknowledge they are in pain and try to help, Pope Francis said.

Young people must be "missionaries of human dignity" to fight human trafficking and all forms of exploitation, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis urged all people to be in solidarity with the regions of Turkey and Syria struck by two powerful earthquakes early Feb. 6 and that are "in part already martyred by a long war."

On the feast of Sudan-born St. Josephine Bakhita, Pope Francis prayed for "a future of justice and peace for our brothers and sisters in Africa."

Pope Francis expressed his "spiritual closeness" and "solidarity" with those affected by a pair of powerful earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria Feb. 6.