Francis in America

The Vatican on June 30 released details of Pope Francis’ itinerary for his visit to the United States from Sept. 22 to 27. The pope is making his first-ever visit to the United States to attend the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia. During his five-day East Coast whirlwind visit, Pope Francis will reach out to the powerful in Washington, D.C., and New York—meeting with President Obama and speaking before both the U.S. Congress and the U.N. General Assembly. But organizers have added side visits that will include some places on the periphery of U.S. life. The pope will visit a Catholic Charities food program in downtown Washington, a Catholic school in Harlem that serves largely Latino immigrant children and a prison in Philadelphia to meet with inmates and some of their families. The papal itinerary also makes clear that the Argentine-born pontiff, the first pope from Latin America, will make Latino Catholicism a centerpiece of this visit.