Opening the church door in Baihanluo reveals a large portrait of Pope Francis -- something of a paradox in an ethnically Tibetan area of Communist China.

The village is only reachable on foot or by horse, and surrounded by snow-capped Himalayan peaks.

Australia's former top Catholic cleric, now Pope Francis' finance chief, on Thursday denied trying to bribe a victim of a paedophile priest to keep quiet as an inquiry heard of horrifying abuse.

Cardinal George Pell spoke out as abuse survivors demanded he return to Australia to give evidence to a royal commission on the allegations.

It was a beautiful morning when Lord Mountbatten took his family out on the water off western Ireland, the last trip of the summer that ended in bloodshed when their boat was blown up by the IRA.

Louis Mountbatten, a cousin to Queen Elizabeth II, uncle to her husband Prince Philip and godfather to her son Prince Charles, died along with his teenage grandson and two others in an assassination that shocked the world.

Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai won Britain's Man Booker International Prize for career achievement on Tuesday, saying he hoped it would allow him to access a wider audience.

In his acceptance speech at a ceremony in the Victoria & Albert Museum, the 61-year-old credited author Franz Kafka, singer Jimi Hendrix and the city of Kyoto in Japan for inspiration.

Friday's vote on legalising same-sex marriage in Ireland is a further sign of the waning influence of the once-dominant Catholic Church, experts said.

Bishops have come out strongly against changing the constitution, but polls indicate their attempt to swing the vote for the "No" side will fall through. 

Mother Teresa of Calcutta's elevation to sainthood has been set for September 2016, according to a top Catholic cleric.

Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella was quoted by Italian media Tuesday as telling municipal officials in Rome that Pope Francis would canonize the nun celebrated for her work with the poor of Calcutta as part of the upcoming Jubilee Year declared by the pontiff.

Saudi Arabia advertised vacancies for eight executioners Tuesday after beheading nearly as many people since the start of the year as it did in the whole of 2014.

The civil service ministry said that no qualifications were necessary and that applicants would be exempted from the usual entrance exams.

Former undercover agent Jay Dobyns says people can be forgiven for thinking Sunday's biker bloodbath in Waco, Texas, was a throwback to a bad 1970s movie.

The shootout — which killed nine people and wounded 18 — seemed aberrant because the public image of many motorcycle gangs has been burnished in recent years thanks to the many largely benign bike enthusiasts who've co-opted some of the same clothing and style.

Iranian-American artist Shirin Neshat's dark kohl-lined eyes are immediately recognizable. Now she is bringing their gaze on Iranian and Arab women's resistance to oppression to this most political of cities.

The Hirshhorn Museum's retrospective in Washington, just steps from Congress, coincides with a diplomatic push to seal a nuclear deal with Iran that has revived interest in relations between Tehran and the West.

The explosive growth of mixed martial arts (MMA) in Asia is putting the squeeze on boxing as it attracts millions of young fans and sells out venues across the region.

Just a few years ago, cage fighting was seen as a niche and grisly pursuit but it is moving into the mainstream with major TV and sponsorship deals and a planned $1 billion IPO for Asia's main player.