Italy: Pope greets Italian Prime Minister Letta Pope Francis on Friday called for the Catholic Church and its faithful to rid themselves of earthly concerns like St Francis of Assisi during a pilgrimage to the saint's Italian hometown. The Argentine pope also referred to the migrant shipwreck tragedy off the Italian island of Lampedusa. He was visiting Assisi with the eight cardinals from around the world he has handpicked to advise him on overhauling the scandal-hit Church government. The head of Italy's crisis-hit government, Prime Minister Enrico Letta, was in the first row of the crowd attending Francis' homily Friday. Images