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Pope Francis ordained 16 priests during a Mass in Bangladesh, the start of a busy day that will bring him face-to-face with Rohingya Muslim refugees from Myanmar and the reality of Islamic extremism in South Asia. At an inter-religious gathering later, the pope was due to meet 18 Rohingya refugees who have fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar where authorities have been accused of ethnic cleansing by the United States and United Nations. In calls for peace in Myanmar, he did not use the word Rohingya to describe the refugees, which is contested by the Yangon government and military. (Reuters Photo)
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More than 100,000 people attended the Mass in Dhaka's Suhrawardy Udyan Park, site of a memorial and museum of Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan in 1971, where Francis arrived in an open popemobile. (Reuters Photo)
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Pope Francis imposes his hands over the head of a newly ordained priest during a mass and ordination of new priests ceremony at the Suhrawardy Udyan park, in Dhaka, Bangladesh.(AP Photo)
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Pope Francis greets believers as he arrives for a mass in Dhaka, Bangladesh. (Reuters Photo)
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Newly ordained priest stand in front of the altar as Pope Francis celebrates mass and their ordination at the Suhrawardy Udyan park, in Dhaka, Bangladesh. (AP Photo)
Catholics make up less than one percent of the population of 169 million people in majority-Muslim Bangladesh. (AP Photo) -
On Friday, Francis' attention turned toward Bangladesh's tiny Catholic community, which represents a fraction of 1 percent of the majority Muslim population of 160 million. (AP Photo)
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Despite its small size, the Catholic Church runs a network of schools, orphanages and clinics and has enjoyed relative freedom in its work, though Christian missionaries working in Bangladesh, a Sunni-majority country, say they have received letters threatening dire consequences if they continue to spread Christianity. (Reuters Photo)
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In his homily ordaining the new priests, Francis thanked those who came out for the Mass, noting that some people had travelled two days to attend. (Reuters Photo)
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The celebration took place in one of Dhaka's best known parks – Suhrawardy Udyan Park. (Reuters Photo)
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This is the same park where in 1971, independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman delivered a speech laying the groundwork for Bangladesh's independence in a decisive moment for the country. (Reuters Photo)
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Bangladesh has traditionally enjoyed peaceful co-existence with its minorities, but in recent years several attacks blamed on extremists have targeted atheists, foreigners, Christians and even members of smaller Islamic sects. (Reuters Photo)
The Vatican said 18 Rohingya refugees from camps in Cox's Bazar will be on hand at the event to greet the pope. (Reuters Photo) -
Upon his arrival in Dhaka, Francis demanded the international community intervene to resolve the Rohingya crisis, which has seen more than 620,000 refugees flee Myanmar's Rakhine state for Bangladesh. (Reuters Photo)
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"I know that many of you came from afar, for a trip for more than two days," the pope told the crowd in his homily. (Reuters Photo)
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