The Pope welcomed students, their family members and teachers from Rome's Visconti High School in the Pope Paul VI Hall on Saturday.
"Free yourself from the addiction to mobile phones," the pontiff said.
While he noted the importance of communication and using mobile phones, the leader of the Catholic Church added, "but when you become a slave to your mobile phone, you will lose your freedom".
He also urged young people to "never to stop dreaming big and hoping for a better world for all".
Today, World Youth Day, I would like to mention all those young saints, especially the saints "next door" to us, known only to God; sometimes he likes to surprise us with them. #DiocesanWYD
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) April 14, 2019
"Don't settle for mediocrity in relationships, in cultivating who you are, in planning for your future, in your commitment for a more just and more beautiful world," he said.
He ended by reminding those present that as the Holy Week begins ending on Easter Day, that it was "also a time of renewal for the soul - a time to blossom!"
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