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Pope Francis Celebrates 82nd Birthday At The Vatican

Pope Francis cut a cake with children at the Vatican before his birthday, which falls on December 17.
AP
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VATICAN CITY (AP) — Children who frequent a Vatican pediatric dispensary have given Pope Francis a birthday cake, a day before he turns 82.

Francis joked with them Sunday, saying he hoped “such a big cake doesn’t give indigestion” and blew out a candle atop the treat decorated in the Vatican’s yellow-and-white official colors.

He said children are good at teaching grown-ups to be humble, to better understand life and people.

Pope Francis blows a candle atop of a cake he was offered on the eve of his 82nd birthday at the Vatican, Sunday, Dec. 16, 2018. The writing on the bottom of the cake reads: "We cannot get used to the situation of decay and poverty that surrounds us. A Christian must react."
Pope Francis blows a candle atop of a cake he was offered on the eve of his 82nd birthday at the Vatican, Sunday, Dec. 16, 2018. The writing on the bottom of the cake reads: "We cannot get used to the situation of decay and poverty that surrounds us. A Christian must react."
Gregorio Borgia/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Francis said: “The proud, the arrogant, can’t understand life because they’re incapable of lowering themselves.”

As if to make his point, Francis declined to sit on an upholstered chair, opting to perch on the Vatican auditorium’s stage steps.

The charity dispensary, with the help of doctors, nurses and other volunteers, assists some 400 children, many of them from immigrant families, and their mothers.

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