WARSAW — When Pope Francis arrives in Poland this week to attend World Youth Day, one of the major events on the Catholic calendar, he will face a politically powerful church closely tied to the country’s new right-wing government. The church here carries a deep strain of social conservatism that does not always align with the pope’s more open and welcoming views.

Source: Pope Francis Will Encounter a Socially Conservative Church in Poland - The New York Times...

VATICAN CITY (AP) - Retired Pope Benedict XVI thanked Pope Francis and endorsed his mercy-filled ministry Tuesday during an unprecedented Vatican ceremony featuring the reigning pope honoring the retired one on the 65th anniversary of his ordination as a priest.

Source: Retired pope thanks reigning pope for his focus on mercy

Pope Francis begins a visit to Armenia on Friday, one of the "peripheries" of the world that are dear to him. He arrived in the capital, Yerevan, on Friday afternoon, and will spend three days in the small country whose geography made it a land of conquest by powerful empires and whose people have greatly suffered for their Christian religion.

Source: In Armenia Visit, Pope Aims For Reconciliation In A Tense Region : Parallels :...

A bishop who invited Mr. Sanders to a conference said his focus on climate change and his attention to poor people were “very analogous to that of the pope.”

Source: As Bernie Sanders Heads to Vatican, a Visit With Pope Francis Seems in Doubt - The New York Times