Pope Francis is intent on bringing greater accountability and transparency to the Vatican, building on efforts forged by his predecessor, Benedict XVI.

The Vatican is investigating after the pope's account 'liked' an image of Brazilian model Natalia Garibotto in lingerie.

In a surprise announcement from his studio window to faithful standing below in St. Peter's Square, Francis said the churchmen would be elevated to a cardinal's rank in a ceremony on Nov. 28.

The firestorm the remarks created over the film has highlighted the Vatican's often self-inflicted communications wounds and Francis' willingness to push his own agenda.

Francis in June had ordered Janiak to leave Kalisz and forbade him from having any influence on how the diocese is run pending the investigation.

In his remarks, Pompeo echoed the Trump administration's harsh criticism of Beijing, which increased after the coronavirus was first detected in China, and as the U.S. Nov. 3 presidential election neared.

During the virus crisis, Francis has become a 21st century “prisoner of the Vatican,” as one of his predecessors was once known, robbed of the crowds, foreign travel and visits to the peripheries that so defined and popularized his papacy.

It was the first time that Francis had skipped giving the blessing and reading an address from the window since his election in 2013, apart from times he was traveling outside Rome.

The Vatican said that on Sunday the pontiff will not address crowds from a window overlooking St. Peter's Square, and will also not hold his general audience from there this Wednesday.

One Vatican official was put into a protective quarantine after a priest from France’s Catholic church in Rome tested positive for the virus.