Pope Francis Arrives In The United States

As the greetings took place, the crowd assembled at Joint Base Andrews was heard chanting “Ho Ho Hey Hey Welcome to the United States of America!”

The Argentine is expected too preach a message of care for the downtrodden and protection for the environment, uncomfortable notions for many American conservatives in which free market fundamentals (often at expense of the poor and the Earth’s resources) remain the national God.

The pope told reporters he hopes the United States will lift its long trade embargo on the Communist-run island but does not plan to raise it in his address to Congress this week. That’s who he is and that’s part of why he’s beloved all over the world.

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 worldwide airport.

While in Cuba, 50 dissidents were arrested outside of the Cuban nunciature, where they were trying to score a meeting with the Pope. Sister Mary Scullion, of Philadelphia’s Project HOME, was personally invited by the White House to be among 1,000 guests on the South Lawn to greet the pope Wednesday morning. The pope continued down the receiving line where at the end he was greeted by four young DC school children – two boys and two girls – who presented him flowers. “That is that Catholic – the word itself means universal, spread all over, meant for all people, and that includes Black Catholics“. And secondly, a relationship with another person always enriches. “I would like to meet with everyone”, he said. And, no, I am on a visit to a nation, and just that.

“He speaks a language of the heart, and I think people connect with him on the level of the heart very easily”, Van Parys said.

“I know it’s not just a once in a lifetime thing, it’s never happened before and it might not happen again”, Bramanti said.

Washington is the first stop on the pontiff’s visit to three U.S. East Coast cities: Washington, New York and Philadelphia.

It may have been summed up best by Bishop Gregory Hartmayer of the Savannah Catholic Diocese “We’re looking forward to seeing the pope and welcoming him to the USA , listening to his wisdom and his words and his reflection on the importance of the family”.