The centuries’ old silver fir tree that had been destined to become the centerpiece Christmas decoration in St. Peter’s Square will now live, perhaps to see another century.

As authorities in Turkey continued to investigate who was responsible for a deadly bombing in a busy shopping district in Istanbul, Pope Francis prayed for victims and the nation.

The Vatican has decided to open an investigation into French Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard, the retired archbishop of Bordeaux, who admitted in a public letter that he had abused a 14-year-old girl 35 years ago.

For there to be peace, people need to expand their horizons, engage in dialogue and work with each other in a way that sets aside selfishness and ambition, Pope Francis said.

Russia’s ambassador to the Vatican confirmed Pope Francis helped facilitate recent prisoner exchanges with Ukraine and said the Vatican is ready to act as a mediator between Ukraine and Russia.

Pope Francis avoided a direct confrontation with Italy’s new government over immigration policies, but he still insisted “lives must be saved.”

Traveling as a “sower of peace” to the Kingdom of Bahrain, Pope Francis further strengthened ties with the Muslim world and witnessed the joy and vitality of its minority and predominately expatriate Christian population.

Numbers are a real challenge, but “those who get caught up in pessimism put faith aside,” the pope told students and staff of the Claretian Institute of the Theology of Consecrated Life in Rome and its affiliated programs in the Philippines, India, Colombia and Nigeria.

Pope Francis has continued to call on Russian and Ukrainian leaders to negotiate an end to the war, but the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church told him Russia wants only the destruction of Ukraine.

Everyone needs help to mature and to grow as a person of faith, Pope Francis told young people in Bahrain, so reach out to someone a bit older and wiser and don’t forget to pray.