New Delhi, May 9 -- US-born Pope Leo XIV urged the Catholic Church to step up efforts to combat a growing "lack of faith" during his first homily as pontiff on Friday (May 9), one day after becoming the first American to lead the 2,000-year-old institution.

"In today's world, it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied," the new pope warned, standing at the altar of the Sistine Chapel beneath Michelangelo's "The Last Judgment." He added, "Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed."

Leo, speaking in Italian and clad in a white papal robe edged with gold, told the assembled card...