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[ technical difficulties ] >> human beings, one to another, in a way that is even more important than ideology. and he said that in cuba just a couple of days ago. that we are about relations. we serve people, not ideas. so all of this stuff speaks strongly to the sort of man that he is. >> all right. pat trick stand by. i want to join ashar qureshi. he has been spending all morning with the crowds anxiously awaiting any glimpse of the pontiff. is the exciting building where you are? >> yes, you are starting to get a sense that people are starting to hold their breath as they are waiting for the process to start coming around here all along constitution. we're at 17th street, and that is one of the turning points where we are seeing some of the barricades pushed back a little bit. so we are hopeful.

and, you know, it's very much a possibility as we see. i mean a large consistency of security as we have been mentioning all morning all around this area. thousands of people have lined the streets here, and went through security, and some people have been out here for nearly seven hours at this point. the entrance is opened at about 4:00 am, and they have made their way to line the streets here, and within a few moments they are hoping that they will be close enough to get a glimpse of the pontiff. >> ashar where have the people come from? are all of them catholics? are there ordinary americans that are just curious. who are willing to go through security and line up and wait all morning to see the pontiff? in >> there have been a variety of people we have seen here

talking. americans people from around the world, i met a woman from argentina, who planned her trip to d.c. around the pope's visit and really made this the centerpiece of her visit to the capitol this week. and others who have done this before. they have visited. they have come out, and waited to see other popes who have visited the united states, pope benedict for example, and another woman said she had seen pope john paul, and she said it was out of the question for her not to travel here to see pope francis, who has seemed toen guise a lot of catholics here in the united states, and also has brought up issues that they are not used to hearing about. his views on climate change that we have been talking about. the first pope to really use scientific evidence and talk about scripture to talk about the responsibility that ordinary americans and citizens around

the world, and catholics have to try to prevent further damage to this earth. and people we have talked to are recognizing that. they say they are willing and interested in hearing more of the discussion that the pope has to bring to this visit here. but on the other hand as we also mentioned, there are people who say this is a political issue that the pope doesn't need to be engaged in. as you mentioned one republican congressman has said that he would boycott the pope's address in congress primarily because of his views on climate change, but on the other hand we have also seen institutions like notre dame announce that they would no longer burn coal for electricity, and that is the result of climate change that the pope has talked about taking action on. >> ashar we'll check back in approximate with you.

i want to go live to libby casey. this pope today libby will be canonizing [ inaudible ]. talk to us about what lead up to his canonization, and what we expect today. >> this is an 18th century francis can missionary. he came to the united states and mexico to start missionary work in the california area at the time. and he is controversial because he is seen by many as a leading figure in the hispanic community, and representative of the strength of hispanic americans in the catholic church. nearly a third of american catholics are hispanic. so for that reason it is very symbolic in a positive way, but it has garnered controversy, because as a missionary, he started numerous missionaries

that were there to convert native americans. once they were converted they were not allowed to leave and go back to their home communities, and they were punished, and there are stories historically of the native americans leaving and being shocked to find they were essentially dragged back to the mission, flogged and punished. so it is still a sore spot and question about why this man would be granted saint hood. this process started long before pope francis. it was a long process initiated by prior popes, but it was decided this winter that the hope would indeed go ahead and canonize him. so we will see this take place, lead by pope francis, symbolic on many levels but not without its concern, stephanie. >> i understand you are at the

basilica of the national shrine, libby, and i was reading some of the interesting tidbits about this shrine, and he has been represented at that shrine. >> absolutely. there are two images of him, in a mosaic and a stain glass, and in fact where pope francis will dress before the mass today there is a stain glass of him where the investments and sacred objects and vessels are kept. so he'll have a moment there before coming out to this very public area where 25,000 people will be gathered to participate and watch mass. this is the third pope to come here. john paul ii named at it minor basilica from the national shrine. and pope benedict came here as well. >> okay. libby casey thank you so much. i want to bring in patrick

hornbeck on this conversation. the pope has spoken to indigenous communities and apologized -- literally apologized. >> very much so when he was in south america earlier this year. in that doesn't take away many people's view that the right way of proceeding is to canonize the man. he died three centuries ago. after a person has died, the church examines that person's life, finds out what virtues he had, but the catholic church always requires that the person perform two miracles, one miracle maked you a blessed, a second miracle makes you a saint. and there is a vatican commission that certifies these miracles. so ultimately it is the pope's decision. >> was there much debate over the decades about the

canonization of this -- of course there are other saints that have been canonized that are controversial, but there are others that sailed right there. >> john paul ii was canonized -- >> he was fast tracked. >> he was. but i think with sarah, that controversy has been there for a long time. the vatican and the pope have to balance these competing claims where latino americans want to hold imup as they would say one of the founding fathers of california, but native americans want to say there's more to this story than just settlement of these missions, and the building of these towns, and that story might have to do with abuse, forced conversion, or beatings. >> there is a troubled history in the catholic church that this

canonization in some ways symbolizes, in some ways there's this tension between this sort of darkness and the dark past that exists in the church's history, and what this pope is trying to do which is focus on charity and poverty and catering to the most vulnerable. >> that's exactly right. the tricky thing is going to be in his own time he represented the church's attempts to deal with poverty, but the providing them with food, and getting them into the missions. at the end of the day, the verdict has to be that sarah was a man of his day. he was very much like other missionaries of the time, and 300 years later we look back on that and say some of that was unacceptable. >> didn't he himself acknowledge that some of the things he did were wrong. >> that's right.

there are wonderful people who defended the rights of native people in a time when the conquistadors and other folks that were settling this country in the beginning didn't stand up for their human rights. we're in the 21st century and revisiting debates from the 17th, and 18th century, and that's an entirely different culture. so in this canonization, i think we can say this is someone who tried to do well, but in our modern framework well short. >> all right. let's head back out to mike viqueira. we do believe that the pope is meeting with the president in the oval office right now. >> that is correct. and we understand that meeting will be breaking up shortly. and the pope will embark on his parade. he is going to be essentially

circumnavigating the white house grounds, traveling in an easterly direction, going one block and turning back up 15th street. and from there he goes to speak at the u.s. bishops. we are awaiting the pope's arrival here. just following up on the conversation you are having, the controversy surrounding it, i would like to add one element, and that is the political context in the united states. we were talking about earlier how the pope had said to an mexican interviewer back in the spring that he considered first coming to the united states through a custom check point on the border with mexico. this is obviously someone advocating for immigration rights, including as it applies to hispanic immigrants here in the united states. he was an immigrant working in california at the time, and i think that that's not going to

be lost on a lot of people who are searching for clues, and thus far from what we have heard from the pope, that he's not being very subtle about it, calling for reform and immigration, calling for compassion for migrants, for refugees and largely dove tailing with what the president said on the south lawn the fact that they were both largely on the same page on that issue, on climate change, on religious liberty, stephanie. >> i thought we were going to play a piece of sound there from the pope. as you mentioned, that was sort of the first big round of applause we heard in his first line as we spoke, he said as the son of an immigrant i'm happy to be a guest in this country built by these families. you have to wonder if this is a pope specifically for our time since we're looking at the

largest refugee crisis since world war ii. >> right. >> how is he received? >> i think he is well respected. john boehner has been talk about his large family of 12 children he was brought up in ohio, and obviously the agenda of the pope. and we're looking at this through a political agenda. obviously their policies and goals diverge. let's try to get in that sound bite, here is a little bit of what pope francis had to say earlier this morning. >> we are living at this critical moment of history. we still have time to make the change needed to bring about

sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change. >> pope francis speaking in english. he is largely going to be speaking in his native spanish, with this exception, and his much anticipated meeting with congress tomorrow. >> you call on all of us, catholic, and non-catholic alike, to put the least of these at the center of our concerns. you remind us in the eyes of god our measure as individuals and our measure as a society is not determined by wealth or power or

station or celebrity but by how well we hue to scripture's call to lift up the poor and the marginalized. [ applause ] >> to stand up for justice, and against inequality, and to ensure that every human being is able to live in dignity because we are all made in the image of god. >> and right on queue, stephanie, pope francis concluding his time at the kwhooits, i understand we have live pictures of the pope getting in his motorcade and about to embark on this parade. this will be the best chance for citizens without tickets to get a chance to see the pope. the pope will be riding along in his parade greeting what has to be an adorable thrown. stephanie. >> absolutely, mike. and our viewers are getting

their first glimpse right now of the pope mobile. this is the first time we have seen pope francis in his pope mobile on u.s. soil, and you saw his motorcade and throngs of security around this pope mobile as it begins its relatively short journey around ellipse. bringing back patrick hornberger our guest, this is the moment that really the adoring fans wait for, and it is also the moment where we may see some real spontaneity. >> absolutely. pope francis discarded the form of the pope mobile that his predecessors had used stephanie. in the past there was glass on all of the sides, and he said it made him feel as if he was cooped up. what he often does is reaches over the side, picks up

children, blesses people with his hands -- >> as he exits the white house gates, you can already hear the crowds. >> absolutely. and as ashar was saying, there are thousands and thousands of people on these streets. we can hear their cheers. it will be interesting to see if he decided to stop the pope mobile at any point to interact with members of the crowd. you did mention, before, stephanie, he is running about half an hour late at this point, that doesn't seem to phase him at all -- >> no. this seems like the part that he likes the most. here is that big smile that we saw. we didn't really see this during the pomp and circumstance. this is the francis we are used to seeing here. >> absolutely. this is the pope of the people being as close to the people as perhaps his security will allow him at this particular moment. he is very interested in being

among ordinary people, and particularly, ever since the beginning of his time -- >> oh here is the first baby, patrick. >> there it is. >> what a gift it is for a catholic mother to have her baby blessed by the pope. >> oh, my goodness what a remarkable moment. and there we saw him stop and tend to that young child. you are totally right to say the smile that we see on his face there, this is the pope that has captivated the world for the past two and a half years as someone who goes against the image of the more dower and critical face that catholics have been used to. >> there is an argentinian flag i just saw. this is the first pontiff from a developing country. i just want to check in with ashar qureshi who is along the parade route. joining us by phone.

do you see him yet, ashar? >> it is a sea of cell phones, cameras poised to capture a glaps and that final moment where they get a chance to see the pope. and we are now just getting a glimpse of the pope mobile coming around the corner, and again, cheers are traveling through this crowd like dominos, which gives us a sense of where exactly he is. the pope mobile traveling fairly slowly, and now we're starting to see him come around the corner, and you can see now people starting to press up against the barriers, getting as close as they can. standing up straight and tall, and -- as you can probably hear, people are starting to cheer very loud and it's getting very, very exciting out here.

lots of kids on shoulders, and it is just a very, very exciting and energetic time for these people who have been waiting, some upwards of seven hours to catch a glimpse of the pope as he makes his way around the grounds here. he is coming up on constitution avenue in just a moment, and as you may or may not be able to hear me shortly -- here he is. we're just getting a very clear view of the pope now. very, very exciting time here on the ground as this -- he makes his way around the bend. >> are they saying anything specifically, ashar as he gets close to you? >> there are a lot of people here who are hoping that now he comes around the bend that he may stop the vehicle and actually get out which he has

done in the past, and we -- >> i it's interesting we are loosing ashar's cell phone signal, and i wonder if the satellite signals are being crossed here. ashar you interrupt if you get me back here. it is a sign of the times that everyone has their cell phone and iphone out and i always wonder if i was there, would i take my cell phone out or would i want to just absorb the moment? >> absolutely. one of the things we have seen here, stephanie is the magnatism when the hope -- pope and the crowds. i think he is becoming more comfortable in this crowd in a

country he has never visited before. never before in the 78 years of his life has he ever come to the united states. so this will be an introduction to the country for him, just as much as it is a visit to the american catholics that he is coming to see. >> again, we are depending on part on the live news feed from the vatican to get the pictures we have been showing you. we do have it back. what you are looking at is the fabulous pope mobile refurbished in a jeep wrangler, a lot of times they are retrofitted into a mercedes. so another symbol we can talk about. let's bring in mike viqueira. mike? >> -- an am trivial point. he is traveling in a chrysler made product now, which is of

course, owned by fiat. so there is a common thread there. he is on constitution avenue, an avenue that has often seen many ceremonial parades, 4th of july parades, familiar to most americans -- >> oh, mike, i have to stop you for a second. this is a moment we have to see. a little girl has made her way past the barricade. the pope says bring her over. they do. [ cheers and applause ] >> at this point -- yeah. >> and she hands him a gift of some kind, and he receives it, and you see, mike, just in a moment, the humanity and the person here. but beyond that, you see the tension between him and security, and the security guard saying you can't go there. >> i'm going to be curious to find out whether or not the secret service knew that was going to be happening.

bad enough if they didn't that there was a young girl which we can all empathize with and feel a moment of tenderness towards, but then to hand him a gift, i'm sure a lot of people were on edge about that. >> yeah. >> but this is obviously a pope that interfaces that is of the people, unassuming, unpretentious, a signature moment there, and consistent with everything that we have seen from this pope. >> mike, i know you and i have been talking about some 13 to 15,000 people on the south lawn. do we have any idea how many people have shown up along this parade route here. >> i do not know. i know that there have been estimates of a million -- i mean it's all over the map. >> yeah. >> you know, as everything in washington -- especially tomorrow after he addresses congress, many are expecting he will appear on the west front balcony of the capitol and waive to the crowd. >> and another baby now getting

blessed by the pope. >> yeah. >> just from a religious perspective, patrick can you comment on how big of a deal that is for your baby to be blessed by the pope himself? >> it's a remarkable moment for the parents. the baby will probably grow up knowing that she or he had been singled out by the pope in some moment. who knows it may be that this child has a different relationship to the church as a result of that. maybe it's a future priest as a result of that. >> you have to wonder -- even though this is almost an open-air pope mobile situation, the sides are open to the air, i'm sure that is bullet proof glass in front there, but you almost have to wonder if he feels a little constrained in it. because he wants to go out into that crowd, if we know that pope. >> i think you are right. remember he has already spent

three days in cuba, meeting the castro brothers, performing mass, and doing a number of other public functions. he had a number of events ahead of him. and he is just embarking on his first day here. and yet because this pope mobile is not fully enclosed i think we can point to that as part and parcel of the way this pope approaches the job if you will. he has dispensed with many of the ornate formalities, from what he wears, the color and type of shoes he wears. his predecessor wore red shoes, and his predecessors have also been completely encased in bullet proof glass in their pope mobiles, so it's a remarkable scene here, an outpouring,

certainly of the faithful. we can't attest to how many the crowd are catholic or non-catholic, but this is a very warm reception and enthusiastic reception. it's almost an understatement to say that, as we makes that left turn towards the east side of the white house complex, perhaps the last leg of this parade. and you see the crowds in the background waving, almost unbridled enthusiasm, stephanie. >> previous papal visits have always drawn large crowds. and i remember these rock star receptions for john paul ii, but i want to ask you this, he -- this pope been compared to bernie sanders in some ways, because he is sort of seen as an outsider. >> studies and scholars within

the church and without the church have identified it as a problem that the church is having. the church is skewing older. there are very few younger generation people coming into the church. church attendance is declining. church finances are declining. so what you have here is a pope who is trying to get back to the church's roots if you will of compassion and deemphasizing the social strictures, the moral underpinnings that have been stressed by popes before him. and stephanie we cannot talk about those problems that the church is having, without bringing up the sexual abuse scandal and the cover up as well. that had so many people angry and outraged. the church has a lot of ground to make up. there's no question about it. but look at the scene we're seeing now. it's still the largest denonomination in the nation. there are 1.2 billion catholics worldwide.

clearly this represents a new hope not only for the church, but church leaders and lay catholics alike are hoping he can reverse the tide and bring catholics back to the church. former catholics that number 41 million in this country. 13% of all americans identify as former catholics. it's really remarkable. but scenes like this, again, the church hopes this can help turn that tide. >> and you do wonder whether this is a pope with his talk about tolerance and conclusiveness can bring lapsed catholics back into the church. although, patrick and i have been discussing whether or not there is clear evidence of that at this point. >> that's right. the question about lapsed catholics a difficult one, because we don't know why people leave. more than half of those who stopped being catholic don't become some other religion, so that points to a broader secularization of society, where

now 30% of americans under age 35 don't identify with any religion at all. so why it is catholicism that is experiencing this at a higher rate than other religious traditions, and that's where explanations like the sex abuse scandal, or the involvement of leaders in certain political matters comes up. religion in general in the u.s. is in a very, very challenenene moment right now. >> it was so short, i think, that tour around the alips, especially for those tens of thousands that awaited the pope mobile just to catch a glimpse. what will happen now, mike viqueira, we see the pope mobile going back into the gates of the white house. >> he will now embark on his very short journey, probably about five blocks north to the seat of the archdiocese here in washington, st. matthew's

cathedral. it's a magnificent space in downtown washington. we saw john f kennedy's funeral was held there. pope francis is going to be addressing catholic bishops there, an assembly of catholic bishops there. many will be looking very closely, and patrick can speak to this, but this is a sin odd coming up next month about some of the hot-button issues that the church and the clergy face right now with regard to the family and the church's stance on divorce on annulments, on whether divorced people can receive communion, something that is very, very important to many catholics around this country. >> mike, let's do have patrick weigh in on this. it's important to remember that this was a long scheduled visit by pope francis; that he's

attending this big event in philadelphia this weekend that focuses on the family. what has been pope francises impact thus far on some of the issues that mike raises. >> absolutely. this is the world meeting of families. it's the eighth time ever the catholic church has convened this event. there's a total of 449 catholic cardinal bishops and archbishops in the u.s. and they have been more hesitant about pope francis than some of the other popes. they have said that conservative clergy haven't been as excited about pope francis. one said he accomplished a

mission of creating a mess within the catholic church. so when he speaks to that group in a few minutes, it will be very interesting to see -- >> we have said this pope is all for dialogue, and when he pope hears criticism like that, what do we know about how he reacts? >> i think he is very secure of who he is and what his mission in the church is, stephanie. the meeting of bishops and cardinals last october, he came in and he said i don't want anyone to feel like they should hold back and not express their opinion. so when the media covered that meeting, it seemed a lot less well managed, because people felt free to speak his mind. >> he also seems free to speak his mind. he said people shouldn't breed

like rabbits. >> yeah. >> was that a soft reference to contraception? >> i think this pope speaks off of the cuff in ways that make a lot of people very nervous. it makes some of the other conservative clergy in the vatican nervous, because they don't know what he is going to say next. but he has also said don't take any phrase in isolation. he wants to see his whole message presented. >> what is his message on family? i know he has said the best situation for a child is a mother and a father. what has he said about gay marriage? what has he said about divorce, and whether a divorced person in the church should be able to take communion? >> that seems to be one of the things that will be explored most in this up coming meeting which will happen on october 4th. and the most controversial

proposal is actually what we might think of as the least significant one. which is the notion that divorced and remarried catholics should be able to return to communion. that has attracted a lot of opposition from more conservative cardinals, stephanie. that may be where the debate focuses how does the church handle those individuals who have experienced a breakdown in their marriage. whether they get into conversation about same-sex marriage, we're not sure. one early draft talked about welcoming gay couples into the church. but we're not sure where this meeting will go. >> when it comes to issues such as his views on marriage and contracepti contraception, how in line is he with american catholics. >> that's a great question. american catholics have generally not endorsed the catholic church's official

teaching on contraception. the pope -- in 1968, pope paul vi, reinforced the teachings. and from the polls we have seen, stephanie, it seems that more chose their conscience than papal teaching. about 60% favor same-sex marriage. higher numbers favor laws that discriminate against lgbt people. i don't know about the affordable care act, that has been another issue, yet we know that many american catholics practice contraception. >> yeah. we know american catholics and catholics around the world are not on the same page on a lot of issues, in the catholic church women are still not allowed to

become priests. but some women in the u.s. want to be ordained. bridget was excommunicated from the catholic church after becoming one of the first women to be ordained as a priest in the united states. thank you for being with us this morning. pope francis supports placing more women in leadership roles in the church, yet he does not believe they should be ordained? in >> well, the full equality of woman in the church must include ore d ordaination, because we image god. we are created in god's image. so to exclude women is to discriminate, and it sends such a prejudicial view to the world that women are unequal, and as you know the catholic church really has an influence over issues of abuse and -- and

contraception worldwide that result in poverty and climate all of the influence of ecological healing, all of the things he cares about must have women as empowered partners and equals in every area. >> here you have this leader of the world's biggest church of america's biggest denomination landing on u.s. soil, in some regards he is viewed as a progressive, but when it comes to women in the church is he stuck in the dark ages. the women priest's movement is leading to create a more inclusive partnership, empower church, where all are welcome to

receive sackments, not just those who obey the rules. but he is missing the point that women are marginalized in his own house. we where not equals, we are discriminated against in his own church. and that's the piece we need to bring home to him that he needs to make the connection. >> bridget mary this was worth excommunication for you and for us that are not in the catholic church what does it mean to be excommunicated. >> for us, because we're women

priest [ technical difficulties ] >> the pope's motorcade is on the move. this is a live picture. let's bring in patrick hornbeck to talk about the significance of that church. and midday prayers what he will be doing and also meeting with bishops. >> absolutely. those two events are combined at this point. this is the mother church for the archdiocese of washington. every bishop has a cathedral.

in this case, cardinal donald who is the archbishop of washington, we saw him riding with the pope just a few moments ago. this is his church, and he'll be welcoming the pope there for a service that has been called noon day prayer. catholic monks and nuns keep hours of prayer throughout the day. in a ritual that has been going on for centuries and centuries. this particular noon day prayer is going to be special because it will be the pope residing and the u.s. bishops in attendance, there are about 450 in the united states, we're told about 300 may be in the cathedral here. they represent a variety of different positions in the church, some have been appointed themselves by pope francis. others were appointed by his press sesz ors. the relationship between francis and the u.s. bishops, like we

were saying stephanie has been a little controversial at times. obviously they are bishops so that have a vow of obedience to them. >> how powerful are the bishops when it comes to the church. they were against the affordable care act because it provided that most employer would provide contraception coverage. >> exactly. they had this moral objection, a very important moral objection from the catholic perspective which was about the use of contraception. >> the pope never weighed in strongly on that. >> that's right.

big smile on his face. 78 years old, this pope, and he has had a long trip already. several days in cuba, and his first full day in the united states, where he begins a three-city tour. there is the pope with his security and his entourage. [ changing captioners ] are talked about and what that. >> what is emphasized. >> yeah, talking more about climate change and economic justice and even just yesterday

on the plane he was asked does that make you a left wing pope and he says, no, i'm teaching what the church has taught and he is right about that. >> famous words who am i to judge when he was asked a question about gay marriage. in some ways is he a pope for our times? you talk about authenticity but is he in some ways an outsider? we are in a political one and . >> i think that's the rector of the cathedral. >> there is sometimes tension between the pope. is it okay to question the authority of the pope? >> this has been a new phenomenon, stephanie. bishops were expected to be in light of the pope and there were cases where bishops were removed

from office for broaching the notion for women priest. so normally, the bishops and the pope walk among each other. most of them recognize that this is a pope who has energized their people. some of the most conservative bishops have raised some concerns. the archbishop of philadelphia said clergy has not been happy about his election. >> but he was elected by the conclave. would they have realized that he would be taking the church in this direction? >> it is a world-wide religious community. there were cardinals and only 11 of them were from the united states so we don't know how it's

a total secret how any particular cardinal voted. the vast majority of these bishops, who the pope is greeting, were not part of that conclave. >> he also appoints the next generation of bishops. >> yes, he does. >> it's like being president and appointing supreme court justices.. >> that's exactly right. he can make as many cardinals as he wants. there are 120 to 125 cardinals who are under the age of 80 at any time. at the age of 80, the cardinal loses the right to vote for the next pope. >> he has not appointed any american bishops, thus far, and there is a greater imbalance. is that a phenomenon we are seeing, at the vatican? >> it's important to distinctish

cardinals and bishops. the cardinal is wearing red on his head. he hasn't any appointed any american cardinals. yet. he has appointed blaze, who is the archbishop of chicago. he is thought of the francis of the american bishops. he has been doing a wonderful job reaching out to communities and talking to poor folks and immigrant folks in his own city. francis is looking to apoint bishops who are like himself. depending on how long he remains pope, he'll be able to shape that. >> i want to go back to mike who has information on gifts that

were exchanged. mike? >> reporter: they have let them know what they give. this is a tradition between presidents and popes and presidents and world leaders. a lot of people have been anticipating. it was a sculpture of an ascending dove, which is an international sign of peace. the dove was from the statue of liberty when it was -- left over from the restoration of its centennial in 1886. the stand on which the dove rests is reclaimed wood from the white house. in addition, the president gave his holiness a key from the native-born american saint. it was presented from president obama from the pope.

>> mike, notable that you're talking about a piece of the statue of liberty, you wonder if that is a comment on immigration. i may be reading into it too much. still, these gifts are always rifeed with symbolism, right? >> reporter: we're talking about religion and politics, so there's abstraction and symbolism virtually everywhere you look. >> thank you. let us know when we find out what the pope gave president obama. i want to go to a political science professor. mark, thank you for your time. when pope francis talks to congress on thursday, tomorrow, he's expected to talk about american politics. with the intent of being

pastoral, it is being politicized. what kind of influence do you think he'll have? >> i saw his remarks at the white house today and he touched upon on all hot-button issues and talked about immigration and said the country was made up of immigrants and inclusion and equality and climate and sent a very clear -- although he did it humably -- that they needed to act favorably. he talked about religion liberty and marriage and a whole range of issues in a specific order that congress is going to -- is

grappling with and the presidential candidates. president obama obama said that his words are going to cause some discomfort, but that that was good because it will shake us out of our complacency. he's a religious leader, he's bringing a moral message. because it is moral, it is political as well. so it will be interesting to see, with many presidential candidates being catholic, what the response will be in washington. >> talk about john boehner, who is a catholic, does he experience moments of discomfort when the pope is talking about climate change? >> well, you know the speaker, whose district is south of where i'm sitting, is catholic and invited pope francis, that's a positive sign. i remember, a few years ago, when issues around obamacare came up, we saw that the speaker

boehner had a more conservative approach to the catholic social teachings and that became an issue. that will be the case with climate change. there are conservative catholics who are not convinced that climate change is caused by human activity so there is that political, if you will, platform that american catholics, in political positions have adopted. so it will be interesting to see if the pope is able to move them to closer appreciation of the church's teaching on climate and care for our common home. that is powerful. the pole, although spoke very gently today and humbly, spoke generously. the implications for them is very clear.

looking ahead to paris, if the united states, if the u.s. boxes on an effect climate convention, treaty, game's over and the pope made that very clear that it -- the time to act is now. >> you're talking about the paris climate treaty summit will happen in december. the pope is very aware of who his audience is. an associate professor in ohio, thank you for your insights this morning. we are coming to the end, for now, of our coverage of pope francis's trip to the u.s. i want to bring back patrick to give us final thoughts. the pope, at the end of the day, talking about our common home. he said that phrase over and over again in his white house lawn speech. is that the theme?

>> i think it may well be, stephanie. it's part of the title of his document on the environment. a common home, where people live together in peace, where no one is poor, where income and equality has been resolved. where international conflicts, like isis, are no more. this is the vision of the pope and it's the vision of christianity. >> there is consistency in that message. even when you look at the political issues, whether it's immigration or the criminal justice system and prisoners and the rights of prisoners. >> this is a pope using new language but it is similar to what his predecessors have been saying. he is taking away where catholics have disagreed. he is talking about what he sees in the bible and gospel.

>> they have been battled by a sexual abuse scandal, which continues today. has this church regained its moral authority through this single man? >> i think there's a distinction we have to make between the church and the pope. in all the polls, more people support the pope than support the church and there's a credibility gap there, the bishops are going to have to continue to address this. patrick, the chair of the department, thank you for joining us this morning with your analysis. you've been watching aj america's coverage of pope francis's visit. it continues now, at the nation's capital. the pope will be having his mid-day prayers and more events this afternoon. we will cover all of them live.

i'm stephanie, thanks for watching. fr

. new leaders gather to address europe's refugee crisis. the pope meets the president, the head of the roman catholic church is welcomed by