VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Tuesday pledged to modernize the Catholic Church, while a panel of eight cardinals started discussing reforms and the Vatican's scandal-tainted bank published its first-ever annual report.
"We must restore hope to young people, help the old, be open to the future, spread love. Be poor among the poor. We need to include the excluded and preach peace," the pontiff told the La Repubblica newspaper.
Popes do not usually give interviews, but Francis has broken with tradition.
Two weeks ago he spoke openly about divorce, abortion and homosexuality in a wide-ranging conversation published by a group of Jesuit magazines.
Speaking to La Repubblica's founder, Eugenio Scalfari - who last month published a letter from the pope in which he was told that God's mercy applied to non-believers like him - Francis said he wanted to revive the reform-oriented spirit of the Second Vatican Council.
"The Council Fathers knew that being open to modern culture meant religious ecumenism and dialogue with non-believers. But afterwards very little was done in that direction. I have the humility and ambition to want to do something," the pope said.
He said the Curia, the Church's governing body, was too inward looking. "This Vatican-centric vision neglects the world around us. I do not share this vision and I will do my utmost to change it."
Francis was elected in March, after the Catholic Church had been rocked by the resignation of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, and following a string of financial and sexual abuse scandals, as well as allegations of Vatican in-fighting.
On Tuesday, eight cardinals he appointed in April started discussing how Vatican governance can be improved. Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi ruled out any quick decisions, indicating that more sessions would be held in the future.
"The pope has said it, it is a lengthy work," Lombardi said.
The cardinals were due to meet until Thursday in the library of the papal apartment where Francis has refused to live, preferring a more humble Vatican guesthouse. The pontiff was expected to take part in the proceedings most of the time.
The Institute for Religious Works, or IOR, as the Vatican bank is known, is at the center of reform efforts. The secretive institution has long been dogged by allegations it is a haven for money launderers and mafia-linked crooks.
In a 100-page statement published online, as part of efforts to improve transparency, it reported a profit of 86.6 million euros ($117 million) last year, more than four times the 20.3 million euros ($27.5 million) it earned in 2011.
The profit was boosted by gains in the value of securities held and sold by the bank, which rose to 51.1 million euros ($69.1 million) from a loss of 38.2 million euros ($51.7 million) in 2011, IOR said.
In an interview with Vatican Radio, IOR president, Ernst von Freyberg, said screening work on the bank's client database to weed out suspicious transactions and close non-compliant accounts was "going along well."
U.S. financial experts "are reviewing every single account and they are also doing special investigations for us," he said. "We have reviewed our procedures for taking on clients and for dealing with clients to make sure that no money laundering can happen," he added.
In July, the IOR's top managers resigned after it was revealed that Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, a high-ranking prelate under investigation for money laundering and other crimes, withdrew 500,000 euros ($677,000) from his accounts.
