The American Airlines plane carrying the pope landed in New York Thursday afternoon.
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Francis’ plea to fight climate change revealed a glaring blind spot of his.
The first Latin American pope has electrified liberal-leaning U.S. Catholics, Democrats and many non-Catholics with a shift in emphasis toward concern for the poor and immigrants and his appeals for action against climate change.
“His historic address underscored the fact that he is committed to finding solutions for a few of the most pressing issues of our time”.
Pope Francis the moral leader was perhaps most evident in reminding Congress, and all of us, of the importance of the Golden Rule, both in our treatment of undocumented immigrants from the south and of refugees from the chaos in the Middle East.
The only reason any of our elected officials in Washington, D.C. – or, for that matter, any true American citizen – could be upset about Pope Francis’ address to Congress is if they have a guilty conscience.
The 78-year-old Argentine pontiff then appeared on a balcony at the Capitol and spoke to thousands gathered on the West Lawn.
This softer tone was in stark contrast to his comments at the US Congress on Thursday. Speaking in Spanish, he added a line to acknowledge that not everyone there was a believer. He said the people of this continent “are not fearful of foreigners, because most of us were once foreigners”, according to the prepared text of his speech.
The crowd was much more diverse than the mainly Latino and Catholic crowd who on Wednesday waited for hours to see the pontiff pass through downtown Washington in his Popemobile. He said there can be no justification for lack of housing.
On Friday he will address the United Nations, where he is sure to make numerous same points emphasized in Washington – a need for openness to immigrants and for the world to share its riches with the needy. Inside, the House chamber was packed with senators and representatives as well as Cabinet secretaries, Supreme Court justices and invited guests in the gallery, which was standing room only. Listening behind the pope are Vice President Joe Biden and House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio. Let us seek for others the same possibilities which we seek for ourselves.
Francis, who played an important role in reestablishing ties between the US and Cuba, made no direct reference to the normalized relations between the two countries.
The speech, delivered without a teleprompter and entirely in English, was a reminder of how even amid a divided Congress one man can unite leaders in a common cause.
Sullivan says he was especially moved by the Pope’s call for compassion.
In this Saturday, September 19, 2015 photo, Pope Francis boards his flight to La Habana, Cuba, where he will start a 10-day trip including the United States, at Rome’s Fiumicino global airport.
Pope Francis also offered a somewhat veiled message about gay marriage, which he opposes.
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“I am convinced that this way is the best, since every life is sacred, every human person is endowed with an inalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes”, he said of advocating to abolish the death penalty.
