Pope to faithful: Abandon mad pursuit of money

Pope Francis urged the world's 1.4 billion Catholics to abandon the "mad pursuit" of money and instead devote themselves to their faith, in a new encyclical letter, the highest form of papal teaching, released on Thursday.

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Francis' fourth encyclical over his 11-year papacy largely abstains from talking about political issues - a departure from his earlier writings, which also addressed themes such as global climate change and "trickle-down" economic policies.

"Dilexit nos" (He loved us) instead encourages believers to strengthen their religious lives.

The world is living in an "age of superficiality," the pope says, and Catholics and other Christians "need to rediscover the importance of the heart."