Meeting a group of pilgrims from the Italian diocese his father’s family came from, Pope Francis said the family “remains a key value” even though it is “a reality that has changed so much and continues to change.”

A Catholic hospital in Tulsa, Okla., said the federal government has presented it with a choice to either extinguish a candle in its chapel’s sanctuary or risk its ability to treat patients covered by Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, jeopardizing its ability to operate at all.

Safeguarding minors and vulnerable persons must be a priority for everyone in the church, Pope Francis said.

The U.S.-born archbishop tapped by Pope Francis to help find new bishops said a good candidate is “a pastor, capable of being close to the members of the community, starting with the priests for whom the bishop is father and brother.”

Interreligious dialogue requires sincerity and mutual respect to be fruitful, Pope Francis told Christian and Muslim leaders.