Pope Francis baptizes babies one by one in an annual ceremony at the Sistine Chapel

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has baptized 16 babies in the Sistine Chapel. The ceremony, under the ceiling frescoed by Michelangelo, has become an annual tradition near the end of the Christmas holiday period at the Vatican. In Sunday’s ceremony, the pope baptized 16 babies, including a boy and girl who are twins. Francis used a shell-shaped container to pour baptismal water over the head of each baby. As he has before, Francis kept his homily brief. He remarked that the babies were silent when they often start a concert of crying.