The picture appeared on the Facebook page of one of the youngsters, who used it as his profile picture, and was going viral on social media today. The picture comes in the same week that the Oxford English Dictionary included the word "selfie" to denote a self-taken photograph on a smartphone.

Pope Francis poses with youth in the Church of Saint Augustine in downtown Rome on August 28, 2013. This picture has gone viral on social media. Image courtesy/AFP