NATION/WORLD

The "spiral of death" that has materialized in the Holy Land in recent days threatens the little remaining trust that exists between Israelis and Palestinians, Pope Francis said.

The principal task of the continental assemblies and the assemblies of the Synod of Bishops in 2023 and 2024 is to learn and strengthen a process of listening as a church to the Holy Spirit and not to address all the issues being debated in the church, top officers of the synod said.

Christians must combat the prevalent culture of wastefulness by becoming poor in spirit, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis reaffirmed that homosexuality is not a crime, and that any sexual act outside of marriage is a sin, in a written response to a request for clarification about his remarks during a recent interview with the Associated Press.

Marriage is not a ceremony, a social event, a mere formality or an abstract ideal, Pope Francis said.

The religious-order brothers, sisters and priests and the hermits, monks and consecrated virgins who serve God and the Catholic Church are called to stoke the "missionary fire" in their souls, said Cardinal João Bráz de Aviz.

Considered one of Caravaggio's best masterpieces, "The Entombment of Christ" was covetingly confiscated by the French for its newly opened Louvre Museum as Napoleon swept down the Italian peninsula in the late 18th century.

The world's religious traditions and their followers are called to offer wisdom to the world and to "infuse it with a spirit of warmth, healing and fraternity," which requires the participation of women as well as men, Pope Francis said.

God suffers and grieves when those who profess to believe in him do not love the people he loves and do not work for the justice he desires, Pope Francis said.

Public criticism by cardinals and bishops is annoying -- "like a rash that bothers you a bit," Pope Francis said -- but differences need to be aired and criticism can be helpful, he told the Associated Press.