AFP, Philadelphia :
Pope Francis wraps up a six-day historic tour of the United States today, having electrified Americans with a message of respecting immigrants, protecting the environment and sharing wealth.
The 78-year-old head of the Catholic Church will lead a giant, open-air mass, which up to 1.5 million people are expected to attend in downtown Philadelphia at the end of the World Meeting of Families.
Earlier in the day, he is due to meet bishops and visit a prison to talk to around 100 inmates.
Neither has a meeting with victims of pedophile priests been ruled out. Philadelphia is one of the cities where the scandal was most serious in the 1980s.
If the meeting fails to materialize, victims of the sex abuse scandal will be very disappointed.
The pope’s predecessor, Benedict XVI, met victims of sex abuse scandal in Boston in 2008.
The 10th overseas tour of the pope began in Cuba, where he urged the country to continue down the path of reconciliation.
Fresh from helping broker dialogue between Havana and Washington, which led to the resumption of diplomatic ties, Francis was welcomed personally by President Barack Obama at the airport and then at the White House.
At every step of the way — in Cuba, as in Washington, New York and Philadelphia, he has been greeted by cheering crowds of Catholic faithful and those drawn to his message and his humility.
Pope Francis wraps up a six-day historic tour of the United States today, having electrified Americans with a message of respecting immigrants, protecting the environment and sharing wealth.
The 78-year-old head of the Catholic Church will lead a giant, open-air mass, which up to 1.5 million people are expected to attend in downtown Philadelphia at the end of the World Meeting of Families.
Earlier in the day, he is due to meet bishops and visit a prison to talk to around 100 inmates.
Neither has a meeting with victims of pedophile priests been ruled out. Philadelphia is one of the cities where the scandal was most serious in the 1980s.
If the meeting fails to materialize, victims of the sex abuse scandal will be very disappointed.
The pope’s predecessor, Benedict XVI, met victims of sex abuse scandal in Boston in 2008.
The 10th overseas tour of the pope began in Cuba, where he urged the country to continue down the path of reconciliation.
Fresh from helping broker dialogue between Havana and Washington, which led to the resumption of diplomatic ties, Francis was welcomed personally by President Barack Obama at the airport and then at the White House.
At every step of the way — in Cuba, as in Washington, New York and Philadelphia, he has been greeted by cheering crowds of Catholic faithful and those drawn to his message and his humility.
