Like St. John Paul II before him, Pope Francis apologized to members of the Orthodox Church of Greece for the ways Catholics over the centuries had offended them, and he told Catholic leaders that they must embrace their minority status with humility.

“Here democracy was born,” he told the representatives. “Yet we cannot avoid noting with concern how today — and not only in Europe — we are witnessing a retreat from democracy.”

After Pope Francis denounced putting up “barbed wire” to keep out migrants and the practice of pushing boats back to countries where they face conditions similar to a “lager,” the Vatican announced he would help move a dozen migrants from Cyprus to Italy before Christmas.

Pope Francis told migrants that, like them, God dreams of a world where everyone recognizes each other as brothers and sisters.

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Archbishop Michel Aupetit of Paris, who had offered to step down to avoid “becoming a source of divisions,” after an article in the Le Point weekly claimed he mismanaged his archdiocese and had an affair with a woman while he was vicar general.

The Catholic Church must be a home for all, especially for people with disabilities who continue to face discrimination in the world and in the church, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis asked visitors in St. Peter’s Square to join him for a moment of silent prayer for migrants, especially those who recently drowned in the English Channel and in the Mediterranean and those who are freezing on the border of Belarus and Poland.

As the guardian of Jesus and Mary, St. Joseph’s reassuring presence is an example for Christians who are called to care for the lonely and those who struggle in their lives, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis expressed his condolences to the victims of a tragic attack at a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, that claimed the lives of six people and left dozens injured.

Despite the disappointing outcome of the COP26 summit on climate change, Pope Francis said he knows it is not too late for humanity to act to combat environment destruction and increasing poverty.