Pope religious liberty talk falls short, amid list of issues

On Sunday, he will celebrate Mass for what organizers estimate will be more than 1 million people.

He has made similar comments in the past, but has rejected the idea of ordaining women.

He spoke of “valuing the huge contribution which women, lay and religious have made, and continue to make, to the life of our communities”, bringing many women in the crowd to tears.

To all of them Pope Francis offered his support at the same place that the freedoms were proclaimed that define the United States, and reminded them that “the Declaration of Independence says that all men and women are created equal”. He’s also scheduled to visit St. Charles Borromeo Seminary and Independence Hall, where he will deliver a speech.

‘When the pope took his hand off him, he had a bit of a smile on his face.

On Saturday evening, he was the featured guest at the World Meeting of Families conference, treated to testimonials from families and performances from the likes of Aretha Franklin.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Pope Francis and an admiring throng of thousands enjoyed a little music from the Queen of Soul, Andrew Bocelli and others at the end of his first day in Philadelphia on his first-ever us tour.

Elizabeth Ndjakmo, 41, of the Cayman Islands, said the Pope’s comments about religious freedom, global warming and immigration merited attention long after his 39-hour drop-in came to a close. Speaking to a crowd of more than 40,000 gathered outside of the famed Independence Hall in Philadelphia, he received an excited response to his urging that the United States live up to its historical call to welcome the world’s exhausted, poor and huddled masses yearning to breathe free.

“This is a city that would change its name to “Francisville” today if we could do that without inconveniencing the rest of North America”, Chaput said to laughs, and then a long round of applause.

Michael, who got up 2.15am for the trip to Philadelphia, had been agitated off and on throughout the morning, but he seemed to calm in the pope’s presence.

“Do not forget the lessons you learned from your elders, which are something you can bring to enrich the life of this American land”.

“I love everything about him”, said Williams.

“I wanted to be part of this family celebration”, said 42-year-old Luis Ortiz, who slept outside with his 11 children near the cathedral.

Tony Coletta, a 62-year-old surgeon and CEO of a health care company outside Philadelphia, nabbed an aisle seat at the cathedral where Francis was celebrating mass on Saturday.

After mass the pope spent the afternoon at a local seminary where he was greeted with song.

“We need to keep young people [involved] because they’re passionate about social justice and serving the least among us”, Whittingham said in a characterization of Francis’ homily. She said the archdiocese has been through too much with abuse scandals and parish closings.

But the visit was also shaping up as one of the most interesting ecclesial pairings of the pope’s trip.