| Pope Francis tells Benedict: 'We're brothers' Posted: 23 Mar 2013 10:35 AM PDT  CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (AP) — The two men in white embraced and showed one another the deference owed a pope in ways that surely turned Vatican protocol upside down: A reigning pope telling a retired one, "We are brothers," and insisting that they pray side-by-side during a date to discuss the future of the Catholic Church.
|
| Argentine Nobel peace laureate Esquivel defends pope Posted: 23 Mar 2013 09:11 AM PDT  By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Nobel Peace Prize winner Adolfo Perez Esquivel defended Pope Francis on Thursday against accusations he failed to speak out against repression during the 1976-83 military dictatorship in their native Argentina, saying he preferred "silent diplomacy". Links between some high-ranking Roman Catholic clergymen and the U.S-backed military regime that kidnapped and killed up to 30,000 leftists between 1976 and 1983 tarnished the Church's reputation in Argentina and the wounds have yet to heal. ...
|
| Pope, former pope meet in first such encounter in 600 years Posted: 23 Mar 2013 08:39 AM PDT  By Philip Pullella CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (Reuters) - A reigning pope and a former pope faced each other for the first time in at least 600 years on Saturday when Pope Francis travelled south of Rome for lunch with his predecessor, pope emeritus Benedict XVI. Francis, who was elected on March 13, flew by helicopter to the papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, where Benedict has been living since he abdicated on February 28. ...
|
