“First, because we human beings are part of the environment”. How do we recognize that we are a worldwide family of brothers and sisters?
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“It was a moment of a lifetime for me as a practicing Catholic“, said Rep. Susan Brooks. According to the recent Pew data, for which Adler was a consultant, Catholics are more tolerant than ever of non-traditional family models – like divorced, separated and same-sex families.
“He sends a message of love and that’s what it’s all about”, says Michael Synk, a visitor from Memphis, TN. “It was a ‘remember who you are as people, act like that.’ So I liked it”.
This week, Pope Francis has thrilled pro-life activists with countless pro-life statements before Congress and at different venues in the United States. There is one thing though, that the pope can change that could go a long way toward advancing the Catholic church.
In reference to abortion and euthanasia, the pope said humanity must “protect and defend human life at every stage of its development”.
The pope also touched on subjects most of our esteemed elected officials want nothing to do with. He is open to the poor, to the sick, to the disfigured, and he exemplifies the emerging focus of religion on the individual. Francis caused a major stir in 2013 when he told reporters, “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?”
On a few issues, perhaps mindful of the sharp ideological differences among members of Congress, Francis chose his words with particular care. We come from around the world. She said US leaders were urged to work in the spirit of cooperation. “And prayer is our conversation with him“.
A D.C. resident commended the pope for opening the eyes of bishops. “But the basic idea is that this earth is a gift from God – the planet in which we live”. Even “We need to avoid a common temptation nowadays: to discard whatever proves troublesome”. And he is no more political or secular than John Paul II, who formed an alliance with President Reagan to undermine Soviet ambitions in Eastern Europe.
The pope will head next to the 9/11 memorial, where two waterfall pools mark the outlines of the World Trade Center’s twin towers before they were felled by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
In a church beset with a wide variety of problems, Marx said that the speech can give Minnesota parishioners hope. He’s very much in touch with the people.
In Washington earlier Thursday, the pope waded into bitter disputes while speaking to Congress, entreating the nation to share its enormous wealth with those less fortunate.
“He didn’t try to ruffle too many feathers”, Gosar said. “This has turned out to be completely false”.
The president singled out the pope’s push for action on global warming, an issue that divides Democrats and Republicans in the United States.
“It was really cool, you could feel the excitement from all the people”, said Berger, who was at the Capitol with his wife, Mary. “It’s always a danger with anyone involved with the church to become complacent with our faith”, he said.
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Those issues Pope Francis spoke about ran on both sides of the political spectrum.
