Pope urges new cardinals to spread the faith

POPE Benedict installed his first group of new cardinals on Friday, elevating 15 men from Hong Kong to Boston to join the exclusive Catholic group that advises him and will one day elect his successor.

The ceremony on the steps of St Peter's Basilica including a prayer for religious freedom in China, where the Vatican says Catholics are not allowed to practice their faith openly.

Benedict gave each man a four-cornered cardinal's hat coloured red to show their readiness to die for the Church and urged them to spread the faith with a message of love.