Pope visits the U.S.
WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 24: Pope Francis waves to crowd from the balcony of the US Capitol building, after his address to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress, September 24, 2015 in Washington, D.C. Joining him are, ( L to R)Arch Bishop Joseph E. Kurtz, Vice President Joe Biden, Senate Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, House Speaker John Boehner Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader, Cardinal Donald Wuerl. (Photo by Evy Mages/Getty Images)
October 21, 2015
Many people in the United States celebrated the arrival of Pope Francis during his first visit to the U.S. in late September. The Pope is known for creating somewhat of a global revolution.
Some of the ways he goes about doing this includes not following previous Popes’ norms, such as living in the Vatican, riding in luxury cars, and having a large entourage of aides. While this does seem to have created controversy amongst certain people, it doesn’t compare to the amount of people who love and support him.
The announcement that the Pope was coming to the U.S. alone was a surprise to many, since it is quite uncommon for the Holy Father to travel to the U.S. Therefore, in response to this, many people traveled the distance to see and possibly meet the Pope by whatever means necessary.
He arrived at 4pm on September 22 at Joint Base Andrews in D.C. Following his arrival he had a packed schedule up until his departure back to Rome on September 27 at 8pm. This schedule consisted of such items as meeting the President, addressing the joint session of Congress–something no Pope has done–participating in a multi-religious service at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center and, of course, being among many, many crowds of people.
He participated in many activities and ceremonies including welcoming ceremonies, papal parades, masses, prayer services, speeches, assemblies, and visiting many U.S. landmarks. In Washington, D.C., he visited the White House, Saint Matthew’s Cathedral, the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and the Capitol. In New York, he saw the United Nations General-Assembly, 9/11 Memorial Museum, World Trade Center, and Madison Square Garden. Finally, in Philadelphia, some places he visited were Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, Independence Mall, the World Meeting of Families organization, and Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility.
Throughout his visit to the U.S., he came across many crowds in which he stopped his pope mobile or car to shake their hands, give them a blessing, or even a small kiss on the cheek. In these crowds were people from many different places throughout the United States, all knowing that they might not even be able to see or meet him. Still, these followers sat along the possible route that he might take, sometimes waiting some eight hours.