Pope Francis has named Manila Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle to a major Vatican post, in a move that could boost the Asian prelate's chances of perhaps someday becoming pontiff himself.

Mary, conceived without sin, is a “masterpiece” who reflects “the beauty of God who is all love, grace and self-giving,” Pope Francis said on the feast of the Immaculate Conception.

A Catholic writer first wrote a nonfiction book called "The Two Popes," then was commissioned to write its fictional screenplay, which centers on fly-on-the-wall conversations between Pope...