He made the remarks a day after the start of the Roman Catholic Church’s Holy Year, known as a Jubilee, which takes place every quarter century. On Tuesday evening, Francis opened the Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica so that the first pilgrims could go through. Millions more are expected to follow over the year.

Pope Francis called for "arms to be silenced" around the world in his Christmas address on Wednesday, appealing for peace in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan as he denounced the "extremely grave" humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Pope Francis in his Christmas message called for talks between Ukraine and Russia to end the war that followed Moscow's full-scale invasion two years ago.