Pope Francis returned to Vatican City Monday after a six-day trip to New York, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia — his first visit to the United States. Family, forgiveness, the protection of immigrant rights and the eradication of sex abuse numbered among his highlighted remarks during the visit, which was part of an international Mission trip.
Who is the pope anyway?
Pope Francis is the 266th and current Pope of the Catholic Church, Bishop of Rome and Sovereign of the Vatican City. Popes are elected through a governing body called the College of Cardinals. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Francis is the first Jesuit pope and the first from the Americas.
A groundbreaking pope
Pope Francis became the first pope to address Congress, and his speech brought some lawmakers to tears — including former House Speaker John Boehner, who, in the wake of his meeting with Francis, declared retirement after months of talking about resigning.
In a press conference explaining his decision, Boehner choked up over his personal moment with the pope, who lauded him for his efforts on education and for children.
In his address to Congress, the pope asked lawmakers to embrace the millions of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. with humanity — calling himself a “son of an immigrant.”
In the same address, he urged the United States to join him in a global campaign against climate change — a phenomena that some GOP presidential candidates have publically labeled a “hoax.”
Pope Francis also took a stand against sexual abuse, an issue that has followed the Catholic Church for years — especially after a string of cases were revealed during Pope Benedict XVI’s leadership. Meeting with survivors in Philadelphia, the pope listened to their stories, offered a few words and prayed with them.
The pope also visited a prison in Philadelphia. He addressed the city’s Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility Sunday, a maximum security prison that houses more than 2,800 inmates. In his speech, he urged the inmates to view him as a “brother and not as a pastor” who “seeks to share [their] situation and make it his own.”
The pope causes controversy
Francis conducted the canonization — the ceremonial elevation to sainthood — of missionary Junipero Serra, a Spanish missionary saint who sought to curb abuses in early Spanish rule. To some Native American groups, he also serves as a figure who represents the extermination of Native American peoples. The Native American groups condemned the canonization and led protests around D.C. A statue of Serra was vandalized by protesters in the northern Californian’s Carmel Mission, where the missionary is buried.
How popular is the pope in the United States?
Pope Francis is a beloved figure among people in the U.S. for his outspokenness and support for liberty and human rights, as well as his more inclusive stands on religious and governmental policies.
A Pew Research Center Poll in March 2015 found that Pope Francis had 90 percent favorability among U.S. Catholics. He was rated favorably by 70 percent of all survey respondents.
In an example of how popular the pope is, Mayor Michael Nutter, who had budgeted $45 million for the pope’s two-day stop in Philadelphia, reported that more than 1.5 million people were in attendance — double the city’s population.
Kenny Duncan, celebrity barber, even shaved a portrait of the pope in a customer’s head, posting the picture online as a form of welcome.