Pope Francis tackles death penalty, immigration in historic speech at Congress

Francis also touched on the Syrian refugee crisis, immigration and environmentalism.

“To imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place”, he said.

“For me, some of the highlights of his address that I was glad to see were his emphasis on the sanctity of human life at all stages of development, the importance of traditional family and protecting religious freedoms around the world”, the congressman said.

“Part of it is bipartisanship – treat the other legislator as you would want to be treated and if we work together and don’t worry about Republican and Democrat and just America, we can get so many things done”, Donnelly said.

The delivery of a crayon-scrawled letter to Pope Francis by 5-year-old Sophie Cruz may have been the most memorable moment of Francis’ first full day in the United States.

“Legislative activity is always based on care for the people”, he said.

“We’ll need a lot of hope today”, Boehner said.

For the majority of the Latinos EFE talked to, the most emotional aspect of the pontiff’s visit to Congress was the blessing he bestowed on the huge crowd on the National Mall from the Capitol balcony in which he made special mention of “the most important, the children”.

“Holy Farther, you remind us that we have a sacred obligation to protect our planet: God’s magnificent gift to us”, Obama said on Wednesday. However, the encyclical itself is much more direct on what climate science tells us about the disturbing warming of the planet. “Thousands of persons are led to travel north in search of a better life”.

He called for “the right use of natural resources and the proper application of technology” to create a more inclusive economy.

That passage would have come up 20 minutes into the speech, but Francis omitted it. It’s unclear if it was purposeful or if he inadvertently skipped it. Francis, who has said English is hard for him, spoke verbatim from his prepared remarks for the entirety of the rest of his speech.

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Linda Sanchez, congresswoman for California’s 38th Congressional District, released a statement following the pontiff’s historic speech.

To underscore his message of helping the poor, Francis went straight from the U.S. Capitol in his small black Fiat to have lunch with homeless people, telling them there was no justification for homelessness. “I am convinced that we can make a difference.”

He triggered another round of clapping from the hundreds of lawmakers, Supreme Court justices, cabinet ministers and Vice President Joe Biden by saying it was an honour to be in ‘the land of the free and the home of the fearless’.