John Thavis | New pope is planning encyclical, first foreign tripTHAVIS: There's some interesting news (and some non-news) out of the Vatican today.
First, it looks like Pope Francis will be finishing ex-Pope Benedict's encyclical on faith. The Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, said he would not exclude the possibility that Francis' first encyclical would be issued later this year. The spokesman noted that before his resignation, Pope Benedict had already done initial work on an encyclical to mark the "Year of Faith."
Father Lombardi also said Pope Francis would continue to reside in the Vatican guest house, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, instead of moving into the more formal (and much larger) papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace. The pope like his room at the guesthouse, and apparently enjoys the relative freedom of movement it offers him.
