The organisers of the papal visit to Britain initially “underestimated the complexity involved in fitting together the state visit aspect and the pastoral aspect”, Lord Patten has told Vatican Radio.

Bishop Philip Tartaglia of Paisley has urged parishes in Scotland to spread the cost of sending people to the papal Mass in Glasgow.

The Vatican's leading art historian has admitted that a newly discovered painting by Caravaggio is only a copy.

The bishops of Colombia and Venezuela have promised to work together despite growing tensions between the two countries.