Pope Francis leaves after speaking to university students Thursday, April 10, at the Vatican. With his penchant for crowd-pleasing and spontaneous acts of compassion, the Pope has earned high praise from fellow Catholics and others since he replaced Pope Benedict XVI in March 2013. 
The Pope meets faithfuls as he visits the San Gregorio Parish in Rome on Sunday, April 6. 
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, have an audience with the Pope during their one-day visit to Rome on April 3. 
Francis speaks with U.S. President Barack Obama, who visited the Vatican on March 27. 
The Pope blesses the altar at Rome's Santa Sabina church as he celebrates Mass on March 5, Ash Wednesday. 
Daniele De Sanctis, a 19-month-old child dressed up as a pope, is handed to Francis as the pontiff is driven through the crowd February 26 at St. Peter's Square in the Vatican. 
Wind blows the papal skullcap off Pope Francis' head February 19 in St. Peter's Square. 
A lamb is placed around Francis' neck as he visits a living nativity scene staged at the St. Alfonso Maria de' Liguori parish church, on the outskirts of Rome, on January 6. 
The Pope holds a baby Jesus during a Christmas Eve Mass held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican in 2013. 
Pope Francis, right, meets with Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at the Mater Ecclesiae monastery in the Vatican on December 23. Benedict surprised the world by resigning "because of advanced age." It was the first time a pope has stepped down in nearly 600 years. 
Pope Francis marked his 77th birthday on December 17 by hosting homeless men to a Mass and a meal at the Vatican. One of the men brought his dog. 
Pope Francis embraced Vinicio Riva, a disfigured man who suffers from a non-infectious genetic disease, during a public audience November 6 at the Vatican. Riva then buried his head in the Pope's chest. 
Pope Francis jokes November 6 with members of the Rainbow Association, which uses clown therapy in hospitals, nursing homes and orphanages. 
A young boy hugs Francis as he delivers a speech October 26 in St. Peter's Square. The boy, part of a group of children sitting around the stage, played around the Pope as the Pope continued his speech and occasionally patted the boy's head. 
Francis has eschewed fancy cars. Here, Father Don Renzo Zocca, second from right, offers his white Renault 4L to the Pope during a meeting September 7 at the Vatican. 
Francis has his picture taken inside St. Peter's Basilica with youths who came to Rome for a pilgrimage in August. 
During an impromptu news conference on July 29, aboard a plane from Brazil to Rome, the Pope said about gay priests, "Who am I to judge?" Many saw the move as the opening of a more tolerant era in the Catholic Church. 
Crowds swarm the Pope as he makes his way through World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro on July 27. According to the Vatican, 1 million people turned out to see the Pope. 
Francis frees a dove May 15 during his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square. 
Francis embraces a young boy with cerebral palsy on March 31, 2013, a gesture that many took as a heartwarming token of his self-stated desire to "be close to the people." 
The Pope washes the feet of juvenile offenders, including Muslim women, as part of Holy Thursday rituals on March 28, 2013. The act commemorates Jesus' washing of the Apostles' feet during the Last Supper. 
Francis stands at the reception desk of the Domus Internationalis Paulus VI residence, where he paid the bill for his stay during the conclave that would elect him leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. 
Francis, formerly known as Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was elected the Roman Catholic Church's 266th Pope on March 13, 2013. The first pontiff from Latin America was also the first to take the name Francis. 
- Pope Francis says the enclosed, bulletproof Popemobile walls him off from the people
- "Let's face it, at my age I don't have much to lose," he tells a Spanish newspaper
- Francis says Benedict's retirement was a "great gesture," does not rule out doing same
(CNN) -- Pope Francis has told a Spanish newspaper that he prefers not to use a bulletproof Popemobile despite the dangers of an assassination attempt because it is a glass "sardine can" which walls him off from people.
"It's true that anything could happen, but let's face it, at my age I don't have much to lose," he told Barcelona newspaper La Vanguardia in an interview published Friday and reported on in English by Vatican Radio.
"I know that something could happen to me, but it's in the hands of God."
Since an assassination attempt on then-Pope John Paul II in 1981, the head of the Roman Catholic Church has customarily used the custom-made glass-sided Popemobile when in public.
Benedict XVI disembarks the latest version of the Popemobile in St. Peter's Square on February 27, 2013, the day before he stepped down as pope. 
This version of the Popemobile was used in September 2010 during the pope's visit to London, England. 
This picture shows the way the pope enters a Popemobile. The back door is opened, revealing a small staircase to help him board smoothly.(September 17, 2010 in London, England) 
Pictured here is the detail of the Popemobile licence plate. According to the Vatican, the letters on the plate stand for 'status civitatis Vaticanae.' (September 14, 2010 in London) 
Pope Benedict XVI waves as he arrives in St. Peter's Square after leading the Te Deum prayer on December 31, 2009 in Vatican City, Vatican. The lights inside the Popemobile enable the crowds to see inside the vehicle. 
This Popemobile (photographed in September 2011) is fitted with a religious image just above the pope's seat. 
An Israeli worker drives the Popemobile during a rehearsal on May 6, 2009 at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. Israel's internal security agency was originally opposed to the pontiff using his Popemobile while in Nazareth on a tour of the Holy Land, according to a government document presented to the weekly Cabinet meeting on April 26. 
2003: Pope John Paul II arrives in St. Peter's Square in his custom-made Fiat Popemobile on May 18, 2003. 
Pope John Paul II salutes the crowd as he arrives for his weekly address in Vatican City on May 27, 1998. 
In this version of the Popemobile, Pope John Paul II arrives at Sarajevo stadium on April 13, 1997. 
1982: Pope John Paul II arrives at Westminster Cathedral in London in a modified Range Rover. 
Pope John Paul II is shot by would-be assassin Mehmet Ali Agca in St. Peter's Square on May 13, 1981. Following the assassination attempt, the Popemobile was equipped with bullet-proof glass. 
1980: Pope John Paul II waves to the crowds from his custom-built truck during a visit to his homeland Poland. 
1966: Pope Paul VI blesses lorries from the back of a Mercedes-Benz in St. Peter's Square, Rome, before they are shipped to famine-stricken areas of India. 
1964: During a visit to the John Bosco School in India, Pope Paul VI drives through the crowds with a convoy of bodyguards. 
October 1962: Standing in an open Mercedes, Pope John XXIII receives an enthusiastic welcome from the crowds at Loreto. 
1929: Papal nuncio Eugenio Pacelli, later created Pope Pius XII, arrives at Freiburg in Germany, accompanied by Dr. Sester. 
Pope Pius IX, Giovanni Mastai Ferretti stands in an open salon coach at a railway station in Rome in about 1846. 
The pope is pictured being carried in the Corpus Domini procession around St. Peter's Square in about 1840. 
Emperor Karl V of Germany, King Charles I of Spain are pictured, circa 1550, with Pope Clement VII in Bologna. 
Popemobiles through the years 
Leaders pray for peace with Pope 
Pope calls for sincerity in Middle East 
Pope to couples: Have kids, not pets But Francis has taken his own approach to transport since assuming the papacy last year -- creating a headache for those tasked with ensuring his security.
On a trip to Brazil, he climbed into a silver hatchback Fiat for the drive from the airport to downtown Rio de Janeiro. Along the route, the vehicle became pinned between a bus and a crush of well-wishers who were reaching into the car to touch the Pope. Security was stepped up after that incident.
He's also used an open-topped vehicle, rather than the enclosed, bulletproof version preferred by Benedict, for tours through crowds of the faithful in St. Peter's Square.
The Pope's recent trip to the Holy Land, during which he made stops in Jordan, the West Bank and Jerusalem, is likely to have posed additional significant security challenges.
But he sees being able to speak with and meet people directly as a key part of his pastoral role as pontiff.
Another Pope Emeritus?
In the interview with La Vanguardia, Francis also did not rule out following in the footsteps of his predecessor in the role, Benedict XVI, who stood down from the papacy citing age and frailty.
Francis described Benedict's retirement as a "great gesture" which opened the door to the creation of an institution of Pope Emeritus, as Benedict is now known, according to Vatican Radio.
"As we live longer, we get to an age at which we cannot carry on with things," Francis said. "I will do the same as he did: ask the Lord enlighten me when the moment comes and tell me what I have to do, and he will tell me for sure."
He speaks too of his commitment to interfaith relations and his hopes for Middle East peace.
Asked finally how he would like to be remembered in history, Francis said he hadn't thought about it, according to Vatican Radio.
"But," he said, "I like it when you recall someone and say 'he was a good guy, he did what he could, and he was not that bad.' With that, I would be content."
Historic attack
Would-be assassin Mehmet Ali Agca shot John Paul II in the abdomen, arm and hand, as he was driven through St Peter's Square, Rome on May 13, 1981.
The then-Pope suffered life-threatening injuries in the attack, but recovered after undergoing major surgery; he later forgave Agca after meeting him in prison.
Agca, who has never fully explained the reasons behind his attempt to kill John Paul II, was jailed for life; he was pardoned in 2000 after almost 20 years behind bars, and deported back to Turkey. The gun is currently on loan to the John Paul II Museum in his hometown, Wadowice.
John Paul II was canonized, or made a saint, in April, along with Pope John XXIII.
Read more: Holy rollers: Popemobiles, from trucks to limos Read more: Public transport to popemobile, Bergoglio's journey
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