
Pope wades into crowds, surprising onlookers
Walking up to crowds, shaking hands with surprised bystanders in the street, mixing his formal speeches with off-the-cuff remarks, Pope Francis ...

St. Peter's Square springs to life with new pope
You don't need to be Catholic to be awe-struck by the majesty of St. Peter's Square, which becomes the stage for the world during times of papal ...

Pope explains name, urges 'church for the poor'
The focus of Pope Francis' papacy began to emerge Saturday as he offered some intimate insights into the conclave that elected him pontiff, describing ...

US clergy sex victims want change from new pope
Most Roman Catholics are rejoicing at the election of Pope Francis, but alleged victims of clergy sex abuse in the U.S. are demanding swift and bold ...

Pope Francis reaches out to Jews
Like his predecessor, Pope Francis reached out to Rome's Jewish community at the very start of his pontificate, pledging to continue to strengthen the ...

Argentines celebrate Francis as their 'slum pope'
For more than a billion Roman Catholics worldwide, he's Pope Francis. For Argentina's poorest citizens, crowded in "misery villages" throughout the ...

New style of papacy: Pope Francis pays hotel bill
On his first day as shepherd of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics, Pope Francis picked up his luggage at a Vatican hotel, personally thanked each ...

New pope's views bind simplicity with 'complexity'
At gatherings of Latin American bishops, then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was often a star speaker about economic inequities in a profit-driven world.

The Jesuits, veterans of tense times with Vatican
While the Vatican has picked the highly disciplined Jesuits as advance men for planning papal pilgrimages and to run its worldwide broadcasting ...

Pope Francis: Simple image, complex past
On the streets in Buenos Aires, the stories about the cardinal who would become the first pope from the Americas often include a very ordinary ...

Argentine Jorge Bergoglio elected Pope Francis
From "the end of the earth," the Catholic Church found a surprising new leader Wednesday, a pioneer pope from Argentina who took the name Francis, a ...

Mamma mia! Ecstatic scenes on St. Peter's Square
In one electrifying moment, the rain-soaked crowd on St. Peter's Square lit up with a frenzy of passion. Before, the pilgrims were orderly and polite, ...

Pope captivates crowds with 1st words about peace
Before they even saw his face, Pope Francis had already won over the Roman masses. The announcement that he would be known by the same name as St.

POPE LIVE: Around the world as a new pope emerges
"Pope Live" follows the choice of the new pope as seen by journalists from The Associated Press around the world. It will be updated throughout the ...

First steps on becoming a pope
The pomp surrounding his selection was just the beginning of an exceptionally busy few days for Pope Francis. A look at the first night — and what ...