Holy calling: Pope Francis has phone chat during audience with public

Francis, who had blessed the attendees near the event’s end, chatted animatedly for a couple of minutes with whomever was on the other end

Pope Francis accepts a phone call during his audience with the public at the Vatican (AP Photo/Riccardo De Luca)

Maybe heaven can wait, but a phone call for the pope could not.

In a decidedly unusual break from protocol, Pope Francis took a mobile phone call from an aide while standing at centre stage in a Vatican auditorium for his weekly Wednesday audience with the public.