The Latin church is strong but has lost members to more evangelical Christian sects.
The Patriarch, dressed in a purple cassock, stepped out of a black, shiny Mercedes at the Latin Church in Gaza City.
But overall, the story of the Latin American church has been one of decline.
But overall, the story of the Latin American church has been one of decline in recent years amid a rise of Evangelical Protestant churches imported from the U.S. or home grown.
It's a "huge event" not only for the church in Latin America but worldwide, he said.
Molina, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops associate director for the church in Latin America.
CNN: First Latin American pope 'very exciting,' faithful say
Some have claimed that Tertullian, one of the Latin Fathers of the Church, believed it.
He was a church leader by the time Latin American Catholicism became divided in the 1960s and 1970s between those who adhered to the church hierarchy, and followers attracted by a movement called Liberation Theology.
Issuing his decree, he said that since the early days of Christianity, the Church had made Latin "her own language", and that it was still held in high regard.
Perhaps over their primo, or pasta course during Saturday's lunch, the two popes might discuss the big issues facing the church: the rise of secularism in the world, the drop in priestly vocations in Europe, the competition that the Catholic Church faces in Latin America and Africa from evangelical Pentecostal movements.
For this reason, all official acts of the church are announced in Latin, as was the case Monday.
CNN: Reporter first on pope story, thanks to her Latin skills
Pope Francis's election was unique in many ways, not least because of his background -- he's the first Latin American pope to lead the church in its history.
Cardinals, many of them among the electors who chose him to be the Roman Catholic church's first Latin American pope, sat on chairs during the ceremony held under hazy skies on a breezy day.
The new pontiff faces the challenge of reviving Catholicism in former church strongholds in Europe and parts of Latin America where it is now in decline, ministering to growing congregations in Africa and Asia and inspiring the church's priests, monks and nuns.
Even though about 480 million of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics live in Latin America, for centuries, the church's top job has gone to Europeans.
CNN: First Latin American pope 'very exciting,' faithful say
The Church officially abandoned the use of Latin in Masses in the 1960s.
For many years the Catholic Church discouraged translation of the official Latin Vulgate edition for fear that the text might be corrupted or misinterpreted.
Right after his election on March 13 as the church's first pope from Latin America, Francis made clear he would relish his pastoral role as the city's bishop.
Nearly a month has passed since the Roman Catholic Church elected its first leader from Latin America and the international media has been treated to a whirlwind blitz of eye-catching tales and images.
This tension between the two wings of the Catholic Church has greatly damaged its position in Latin America.
While Catholic services today are celebrated in local languages, Latin remains the official language of the Roman Catholic church.
CNN: Reporter first on pope story, thanks to her Latin skills
The new pontiff, the first from Latin America, has called for the Roman Catholic Church to be closer to ordinary people, especially the poor and disadvantaged.
BBC: Pope Francis to wash feet of prisoners in pre-Easter Mass
During the conclave that led to Pope Benedict's election, there was much speculation that a pope might be chosen from one of the continents where the Catholic Church is growing fastest: Africa and Latin America.
The church is growing the fastest in Africa and Latin America.
The Second Vatican Council of the 1960s questioned nearly every tenet and tradition of the church, from the celebration of Mass in Latin to the rules governing the lives of nuns and clergy.
The selection of a Latin American pope underscores a big demographic shift in the Catholic Church toward the region.
Bergoglio is also known for modernizing an Argentine church that had been among the most conservative in Latin America.
The Pope said the Church was the "guardian and promoter" of Latin and that a good understanding of it was more important than ever.
Clerical sex abuse scandals have soured many faithful on their church, and competition from rival evangelical churches in Latin America and Africa has drawn souls away.
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