Pope Francis celebrates birthday with children treated at Catholic clinic

Pope Francis, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on 17 December 1936, is today celebrating his 77th birthday.

To celebrate his birthday, the charismatic Pope yesterday visited the Vatican's Pediatric Dispensary of Santa Marta, a small children's clinic.

The hospital offers treatment and services to some of the poorest families in Rome and the world. It's run by volunteer doctors, as well as the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.

Following in the footsteps of Benedict XVI, Pope Francis visited the dispensary, and witnessed first hand how they are changing lives.

He then welcomed the patients' families and the clinic volunteers at Paul VI Hall.

The children at the dispensary lost no time in wishing Pope Francis a happy birthday. First, they gave him a cube picture frame, as Michael Jackson's "Heal the World" played in the background.

Then they sang "Happy Birthday" and gave him a white and yellow cake, the Vatican colors.

The children's last gift was a white dove, which everyone wanted to hold. They even gave it a name - Sibila.

After spending time with the children at the hospital, Pope Francis also met with their mothers. But it was a small child who stole the spotlight when he removed the Pope's white hat.