The pope told his security detail to "let her be. God speaks" through children.

All people of goodwill have a duty to help vulnerable women and other victims of human trafficking escape from forced sexual slavery, the pope wrote in a prologue of a new book on the suffering of women forced into prostitution.

The murder of 35-year-old officer Mario Cerciello Rega in Rome's Prati district July 26 and the subsequent arrest of two young American men sent shockwaves around the country.

With the recent appointments of Matteo Bruni as the new director of the Holy See Press Office and Cristiane Murray as vice director, the Vatican is taking another step forward in its continuing efforts to reform its communication structures.

Pope Francis appointed Matteo Bruni to serve as director of the Vatican press office, replacing Alessandro Gisotti, who had been serving as interim director since Dec. 31.

The complex process of examining bones and extracting DNA will be crucial in determining whether the remains in a small Vatican cemetery belong to Emanuela Orlandi, a young woman who disappeared in 1983, a Vatican-appointed forensic anthropologist said.

According to the Vatican, an estimated 250 migrants, refugees and rescue volunteers attended the Mass, which was celebrated at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica.

The Mass July 8 will mark the sixth anniversary of the pope's visit to the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.

Pope Francis will declare Blessed John Henry Newman, the 19th-century British cardinal, a saint Oct. 13.

While the upcoming Synod of Bishops on the Amazon aims to highlight the damage wrought by climate change and exploitation, the possibility of ordaining married men to minister in remote areas of the rain forest continues to garner more attention.