Pope in the US: Obama, environment, Cuba and integral models of development
Washington (AsiaNews) – Pope Francis and US President Barack Obama spoke at the Welcome Ceremony held at the White House at 9.30 (local time) at the start of the pontiff’s six-day apostolic visit to the United States.
The two leaders focused on “the conscious and responsible care of our common home,” the normalisation of relations with Cuba, the protection “of the vulnerable of the world,” the promotion of “inclusive models of development,” American Catholics’ expectations vis-à-vis “a just and wisely ordered society” and “their deepest concerns and their right to religious liberty.”
At his arrival, Francis was welcomed by President Obama and his wife Michelle, dressed in black, who led him to a stand in the South Lawn, before a crowd of about 20,000 people.
A military salute and the anthems preceded the speeches, which were followed by a private meeting that lasted about 20 minutes.
Obama greeted “the first Pope from the Americas”, praising “the way your message of love and hope has inspired so many people, across our nation and around the world. [. . .] You call on all of us, Catholic and non-Catholic alike, to put the ‘least of these’ (i.e. the poor) at the center of our concern. You remind us that in the eyes of God our measure as individuals, and as societies, is not determined by wealth or power or station or celebrity, but by how well we hew to Scripture’s call to lift up the poor” and “ensure that every human being is able to live in dignity – because we are all made in the image of God.”
After thanking the Holy Father “for your invaluable support of our new beginning with the Cuban people,” the US leader said he backed the pope’s call for an end to war, and his support for religious freedom, which is cherished in the United States.
“Yet around the world at this very moment,” the president said, “children of God, including Christians, are targeted and even killed because of their faith. Believers are prevented from gathering at their places of worship. The faithful are imprisoned. Churches are destroyed. So we stand with you in defense of religious freedom and interfaith dialogue, knowing that people everywhere must be able to live out their faith free from fear and intimidation.”
Obama went on to say that he supported the pope’s call to all world leaders to preserve our precious world for future generations.
In his reply, which was delivered in English, Francis said, “As the son of an immigrant family, I am happy to be a guest in this country, which was largely built by such families. I look forward to these days of encounter and dialogue, in which I hope to listen to, and share, many of the hopes and dreams of the American people.
“During my visit I will have the honor of addressing Congress, where I hope, as a brother of this country, to offer words of encouragement to those called to guide the nation’s political future in fidelity to its founding principles. I will also travel to Philadelphia for the Eighth World Meeting of Families, to celebrate and support the institutions of marriage and the family at this, a critical moment in the history of our civilization.
“Mr. President, together with their fellow citizens, American Catholics are committed to building a society which is truly tolerant and inclusive, to safeguarding the rights of individuals and communities, and to rejecting every form of unjust discrimination. With countless other people of good will, they are likewise concerned that efforts to build a just and wisely ordered society respect their deepest concerns and their right to religious liberty. That freedom remains one of America’s most precious possessions. And, as my brothers, the United States Bishops, have reminded us, all are called to be vigilant, precisely as good citizens, to preserve and defend that freedom from everything that would threaten or compromise it.
“Mr. President, I find it encouraging that you are proposing an initiative for reducing air pollution. Accepting the urgency, it seems clear to me also that climate change is a problem which can no longer be left to a future generation. When it comes to the care of our ‘common home’, we are living at a critical moment of history. We still have time to make the changes needed to bring about ‘a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change’ (Laudato Si’, 13). Such change demands on our part a serious and responsible recognition not only of the kind of world we may be leaving to our children, but also to the millions of people living under a system which has overlooked them. Our common home has been part of this group of the excluded which cries out to heaven and which today powerfully strikes our homes, our cities and our societies. To use a telling phrase of the Reverend Martin Luther King, we can say that we have defaulted on a promissory note and now is the time to honor it.
“We know by faith that ‘the Creator does not abandon us; he never forsakes his loving plan or repents of having created us. Humanity still has the ability to work together in building our common home’ (Laudato Si’, 13). As Christians inspired by this certainty, we wish to commit ourselves to the conscious and responsible care of our common home.
“The efforts which were recently made to mend broken relationships and to open new doors to cooperation within our human family represent positive steps along the path of reconciliation, justice and freedom. I would like all men and women of good will in this great nation to support the efforts of the international community to protect the vulnerable in our world and to stimulate integral and inclusive models of development, so that our brothers and sisters everywhere may know the blessings of peace and prosperity which God wills for all his children.”
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