Picture This Applauding the Pope
Prelates stand behind a statue of St. Peter during Pope Francis's sun-drenched inauguration mass on Tuesday at the Vatican. The ceremony involved the pope receiving a ring that symbolizes the papacy and a wool stole symbolizing his role as the shepherd of the 1.2 billion members of the Catholic Church.
The ceremony was attended by royalty, heads of state, rabbis, sheiks and between 150,000 and 200,000 others, according to Vatican officials. The VIP section included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, US Vice President Joe Biden, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, Taiwanese President Ying-Jeou Ma, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, Prince Albert of Monaco and Bahrain Prince Sheik Abdullah bin Haman bin Isa Alkhalifa.
Pope Francis was interrupted by applause several times during his homily, in which he spoke of the need to preserve the environment and care for the poor.
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