A Mass Co-Celebrated by Pope Francis and his predecessor Benedict was watched by roughly one million pilgrims and a vast T.V. and radio audience , with an estimated 800,00 alone in St. Peter's square

Nearly 100 foreign delegations were in attendance , including Royal dignitaries and Heads of State  and Government , amongst them the King and Queen of Spain

It was the first time two Popes have been Canonised at the same time , in his sermon , Pope Francis paid tribute to the two new Saints as "mennnn of courage" "they were Priests , bishops and Popes of the 20th Century" he said

Special bus , train and boat services ferried many thousand of pilgrims to Rome for the two hour ceremony , which started at 10:00 a.m. local time ( 08:00 GMT , 3:00 a.m. EST , 12:00 a.m. PST) , some had bagged places to sleep overnight as close as possible to St. Peeter's square , hoping be among the first in when it opened to thhe public

Giant screens were setup in nearby streets and elsewhere in the city , for those unable to get to the square

The Vatican will hold the simultaneous Canonisation by Pope Francis of two 20th century Popes who led the transition of the worlds oldest international organisation into the modern world , John XXIII and Johm Paul II ,former Pope Benedict , now retired , is expected to also be present

Pope Francis will preside over a two hour ceremony expected to attract more than 50 heads of state and government , and more than a million faithful to the Church's hub , at the tomb of the Apostle Peter the first pope

Foor the first time in history , two liviing Popes , Francis and Benedict , will be witnessing the raising of the altars of two of their dead predecessors

The Saint making process is usually long and very costly , in the early Chuch , Saints were often chosen by popular acclaim , but over the centuries the Vatican has created a specific department to supervise the deciding who shall get the title of Saint

Saint John Paul II , who created more new Saints and Blesseds during his lifetime than any of his predecessors , has been fast tracked to Sainthood , only nine years after hiis death (the diffrence is that a Saint is venerated by the worldwide Church , while Blessed is venerated locally) The crowds that gathered as John Paul lay dying cried out "Santo Sabito!" (make him a Saint immediately!)

Saint John , a Priest/Diplomat from a humble Italian peasant background , has gone down in history as "The Good Pope' he was also deeply mourned around the world  when he died  in 1963 , but his promotion too full Sainthood was decided suddenly and very recently by Pope Francis

While Saint John XXIII was one of the shortest reigning Popes , sitting only 5 years before his death , Sint John Paul II reigned longer than practically any other pope in history , sitting atop the papal Throne just over 25 years

A 21 year old man has died after being crushed by a crucifix erected in honour of Pope John Paul II  in Northern Italy 

Marco Gusmini was killed instantly  and one other man taken to hospital Italian media reported

Part of the 100 ft high (30m) sculpture collapsed at a ceremony ahead of the Pope's Cannonisation , John Paul II and his predecessor Pope John XXIII are due to be declared Saints on Sunday

The crucifix commemorates the Pope's visit to the area in 1998 , the installation , near the town of Cevo , was designed as a large curved cross with a statue of Jesus Christ ,weighing 1,320 lb. (600 kg) fixed to the top

A group of children were reported to be in attendance at the time

The cross was designed by sculptor Enrico Job , and was created for John Paul's visit to nearby Brescia

The two Popes will be declared Saints at the Vatican on Sunday

Tens of thousands of people gathered in St. Peters Square for Easter Mass led by Pope Francis , after leading the Ceremony that marks the Holiest day in the Christian calender, Pope Francis delivered his traditional blessing and address

He prayed for peace in Syria and Ukraine and " an end to all war and every conflict" and he also prayed for those people around the world suffering from hunger , poverty , disease and neglect 

This is the the second Easter Mass and "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message 77 year old Francis  has delivered as Pope

The avenue leading up to the Vatican was filled with 35,000 flowers donated by the Netherlands

"Help us to overcome the scourge of hunger , aggravated by conflicts and by the immense wastefulness for which we are often responsible" Pope Francis prayed

He appealed for more medical attention for those suffering from the deadly Ebola virus in West Africa and also prayed for the protection of the most vunerable members of society

He asked God to "enlighten and inspire the initiatives that promote peace in Ukraine , so that all those involved , will make every effort to prevent violence and in a spirit of unity and dialogue chart a path for the country's future"

"We pray in a particular way for Syria" he said , expressing the hope that the "defenceless and civil population" will be protected from the violence and get the aid they need

In reference to Syria he urged the international community to "boldly negotiate the peace long awaited and overdue"

This message came as Syria's President Bashar al Assad marked Easter by visiting the ancient Christian town of Maalula

According to the Bible , the Son of God was flogged , ordered to carry the cross which he would be Crucified and then put to death , it's difficult to see what is "Good" about it

Some sources suggest that the day is "Good" in that it is Holy or that the phrase is a corruption of "God's Friday"

The Oxford English Dictionary , says the adjective traditionally "designates a day on ( or sometimes a season in which Religious Obeservance is held" the OED states that "Good" in this context refers to a "day or season observed as Holy by the Church", hence the greeting "Good Tide" at Christmas or on Shrove Tuesday , in addition to Good Friday there is also a less well known Good Wednesday , namely the Wednesday before Easter

The earliest known use of "Guode Friday" is found in the South English Legendary , a  text from around 1290 A.D.

According to the Baltimore Catechism , the standard U.S. Catholic school text from 1885 to the 1960's Good friday is Good because Christ "showed his great love for man and purchased for him every blessing"

The Right Reverend Kay Goldsworthy is an assistant bishop in the diocese of Perth , where Easter comes in the Autumn , and where she says farmers are now anxiously scanning the sky for signs of rain

She preached at the Abbey on Palm Sunday and will lead meditation there on Good Friday , on Easter Sunday she will preach in the neighbouring St. Margaret's , Westminster , the Parish Church of Parliament

Shee has been welcomed by the Dean and Chapter of the Abbey , and feted by supporters of the creation of women bishops in the Church of England

Tests suggest a fragment of papyrus mentioning Jesus had a wife is more likely an ancient document than a forgery

The text is written in Coptic and contains a dialogue in which Jesus refers to "my wife"

Kevin King a Professor of divinity  , writes in the Howard Theological Review that the papyrus dates to the eighth century Egypt , based on carbon dating and chemical tests on the ink

In quotes carried by Vatican radio , the Pope described the abuse as a " moral damage carried out by men of the church", and said "sanctions" would be imposed , it is being described as his strongest statement on the issue so far

Last month , Pope Francis strongly defended the Roman Catholic church's record on tackling sexual abuse by priests , following U.N. criticism

The Pope set up a committee last year to organize help for victims of clerical sexual abuse , but has been accused by some catholics of dragging his feet in acknowledging the extent of the moral and mental damage caused by pedophile-priests

SANCTIONS

Pope Francis made the statement on Friday , during a meeting with a catholic children's non-governmental organisation , the Vatican radio reports

"We will not take one step backward with regards too how we will deal with this problem , and the sanctions that must be imposed" , he said adding "we have to be even stronger"

The Catholic Church has faced numerous allegations of child sex abuse by priests around the world and criticism over inadequate responses by Bishops

Earlieer this year the Pope stengthened Vatican laws on child abuse , broadening the definition of crimes aganst minors to include sexual abuse of children

HRH Queen Elisabeth has visited and exchanged gifts with The Pontif Pope Francis on Her Majesty's visit to Vatican City on the third of April 2014 

Italian police have arrested two men who were allegedly trying to deposit trillions of euros in fake bonds in the Vatican Bank

Officials say the pair , an American and a Dutch national , claimed they had an appointment with bank officals to gain entry , but were handed over to the police 

Fake bonds with a face value of 3 trillion € ( $ 4.1 , £ 2.5 tr) were found in their briefcase officials said

The suspects were reportedly hoping to open a line of credit at the bank , the Bank officially called the Institute for the Works of Religion , runs thousands of privte accounts held by cardinals , bishops and religous orders all over the world

The Vatican has been tightening up banking procedure after criticism by a European watchdog body that has been used as an off shore fiscal haven

Pope Francis has ordered a complete overhaul of the bank and a detailed inquiry into the transparency of it's transactions

The Pontif fired two former directors , who may now face possible trial oon money laundring charges

The Vatican made the announcement in a statement on Wednesday , Bishop of Limburg Franz-Peter Tebartz-von Eist has been accused of spending more than 31 million euros (£26m) on renovating his offical residence

The cleric dubbed " bishop of bling" by the media , offered to resign last October when the scandal broke, in response Pope Francis temporarily suspended Bishop Tebartz-von Eist and instructed a Church commission to investagate the matter

Pope Francis has repeatedly expressed his disapproval of senior clerics whose lifestyles seem too lavish on Wednesday , the Vatican said the inquiry found that the senior cleric could no   longer exercise his ministry

The Church called on the diocese of Linburg to accept the decision "with docility" and to work toward a "climate of Charity and Reconcilation" the Vatican did not further elaborate on the future of Bishop Tebartz-von Eist , but said he would get a new position 'at the opportune time"

Auxilliary Bishop Manfred Grothe has been appointed to run the Limburg diocese , Bishop Tebartz -von Eist and his luxury lifestyle have become infamous in Germany , where many people pay a church tax to the state , the tax raised 5.2 billion Euros for Catholics and 4.6 Euros for Prodistants in 2012

It was in Germany that Martain Luther launched the Reformation five centuries ago , in response to what he said were excesses and abuses within the Church

Evangelii Gaudium The Joy of Gospel , is now in it's 5th reprint  and has so far sold 11,000 copies

The booklet does not contain new doctrine , but suggests how church teachings and practices can best be applied to the present

Since it's release in November, it has out sold all such texts since the second vatican counsel Documents on eccumenism 

A spokesman  for bookseller's Waterstone's said "Pope Francis's book Evangelii    Gaudium may not yet be rivalling Alex Ferguson's autobiography  for the best selling work on non fiction , but 11,000 sales in the market since publication late last year are not to be sneezed at

Pope Francis announced the initial members of a commission to advise him on sex abuse policy Saturday , tapping lay and religious expats , an Irish woman assulted as a child by a priest , to start plotting the commission's tasks and priorities 

The eight members were announced after Francis came under criticism from victim's groups , for a perceived lack of attention to the abuse scandal , which   has seriously damaged the Church's reputation anound the world and cost dioceses billions of dollars in legal fees and settlements

The Vatican in December announced that Francis had decided to create the commission to advise the Church on best policies to protect children , train personnel and keep abusers out of the clergy , but no details had been released until Saturday , and it remains unknown if the commission will deal with the critical issue of disciplining bishops who cover up for abusers

Among the eight inaugural members are Marie Collins , who at 13 was assulted by a hospital chaplin , also named was Cardinal Sean O' Malley as well as Baroness Sheila Hollins

Pope Francis    has launched a stinging    attack on the mafia , warning gangsters that they will go to hell , unless they repent and stop doing their evil ways

Pope Francis was speaking at a prayer vigil for relatives of those killed by the Mafia, after expressing solidarity with the 642 people at the vigil , the Pope said that he could not leave the service without addressing those not present ,"The Protagonists" of Mafia violence

"This life that you live now won't give you pleasure, it won't give you joy or happiness, there's still time to not end up in hell , which is what awaits you  if you continue on this path 

The Pope has spoken out frequently about the evils of corruption and wrote a booklet on the subject  in 2005 , when he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires

The Vatican Library has begun digitising it's priceless collection of Ancient Manuscripts , dating from the origins of the Church

The first stage of the project will cover some 3,000 Handwritten Documents over  the next four years

The cost more than 20 million (£12m) will be borne by Japan's NTT Data Technology Company

Eventually the Library says it hopes to make available online all of its 82,000 Manuscripts , the 3,000 Documents to be scanned over the next four years include copies of works of Classical greek and Latin Literature and Mediaeval and Renaissance Illuminated Manuscripts

The Library  was founded by a 15th century Pope and contains Important works of Mathematics and Science , Law and Medicine , from the earliest times right up to the Present Day