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Inside Pope Francis’ U.S. Trip Schedule

4 minute read

Pope Francis’ schedule is almost always a political document. Everyone wants a piece of it, especially when it comes to his upcoming September trip to the U.S. The White House and Congress, not to mention outside groups, have been lobbying for months to try to influence his agenda. On Tuesday morning, the Vatican and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released the official schedule for the trip. Predictably, it is packed. Pope Francis will visit Cuba and the U.S. from Sept. 19-28—four days in Cuba, five in the U.S—and give a total of 26 addresses, 18 of them in the U.S.

The world has known the big-ticket items for months—a meeting with President Obama, an address to the U.S. Congress, a talk at the United Nations, and a mass in Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families. But the other events hold just as powerful a message. The logistics are often the key to understanding the entire agenda—where Pope Francis is, who he is with, where he is coming from and where he is going next say as much about his message as his words themselves.

This schedule shows the Pope’s diplomatic acumen from the start. Pope Francis comes to Washington only after giving first dibs to Cuba, an island that the U.S. had blackballed economically until he intervened in December. And, Pope Francis will fly directly from there to Joint Base Andrews outside Washington DC, symbolizing the new link he helped to forge between the two nations.

Once he has arrived in the U.S., Pope Francis establishes a pattern—he links political events with pastoral ones. His first full day in Washington, the Pope will meet with Obama at the White House, and then leave to hold midday prayer with the U.S. bishops at St. Matthew’s Cathedral. It is tradition for the pope to gather the bishops when he visits, and leaving the White House for a church shows the value Francis places on the work of the church and its leaders.

The next day, immediately after speaking to the U.S. Congress, he will visit Catholic Charities, the social outreach ministry of the Archdiocese of Washington, which does extensive work to serve the area’s poor, homeless and immigrant communities. The juxtaposition is a not-so-subtle hint about who Pope Francis hopes political leaders will be—politicians who serve the poor, instead of staying isolated in the halls of power.

The Most Surprising Photos of Pope Francis

Pope Francis
The wind lifts Pope Francis' mantle as he delivers his speech in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, on Sept. 26, 2015.Tony Gentile—AP
Pope Francis US visit
Pope Francis looks at the Statue of Liberty from the window of a helicopter on his way to the John F. Kennedy International Airport, in New York City, on Sept. 26, 2015.L'Osservatore Romano/AP
Pope Francis US Visit mannequin
A Pope Francis mannequin rides around in a car in Times Square as New York City waits for the arrival of the Pope to the city, on Sept. 24, 2015.Timothy A. Clary—AFP/Getty Images
Pope Francis US Visit
Kaydn Dorsey, 4, and Lionel Perkins, 4, draw on a coloring sheet bearing the image of Pope Francis as they wait for him to arrive on a visit to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington in Washington, on Sept. 24, 2015.David Goldman—Reuters
Pope Francis US Visit nuns selfie
Nuns with the Hospitaler Sisters of Mercy in Pleasantville, N.J., pose for a selfie with a cutout of Pope Francis, at the World Meeting of Families conference, in Philadelphia, on Sept. 22, 2015. Matt Rourke—AP
Pope Francis Birthday
Pope Francis blows out the candles of a birthday cake to celebrate his 78th birthday during a general audience at the Vatican on Dec. 17, 2014. Osservatore Romano/AFP/Getty Images
Francis
Paying the bill at Rome's Domus Internationalis Paulus VI hotel, where Pope Francis stayed as a cardinal before entering the conclave and being elected pope.Osservatore Romano/AP
Vatican Benedict
Welcoming Pope emeritus Benedict XVI as he returns to the Vatican from the pontifical summer residence of Castel Gandolfo.Osservatore Romano/AP
POPE: EASTER HOLY MASS
Holding a disabled child after celebrating Easter Mass.Alessandro di Meo—ANSA/Zuma Press
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Pope Francis masks in a factory in Brazil, where the Pontiff took his first overseas trip. Christophe Simon—AFP/Getty Images
Italy - Religion - Pope Francis leads Worldwide Eucharistic Adoration
Leading the Worldwide Eucharistic adoration at the Vatican.Alessandra Benedetti—Corbis
Vatican Pope
A gust of wind blows the pope's mantle. Alessandra Tarantino—AP
Pope Francis attends the opening of the Pastoral Convention of the Diocese of Rome at the Vatican
Attending the opening of the Pastoral Convention of the Diocese of Rome. Stefano Rellandini—Reuters
Pope Francis waves as he leaves Guanabara Palace where he attended a welcoming ceremony in Rio de Janeiro
Leaving a welcoming ceremony at Guanabara Palace in Rio de Janeiro. Ricardo Moraes—Reuters
Pope Francis waves as he arrives to lead the weekly audience in Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican
Greeting the weekly General Audience. Stefano Rellandini—Reuters
Pope Francis
Pointing to the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida from the balcony of the Aparecida basilica in Brazil. Domenico Stinellis—AP
Catholic faithful with sticker bearing an image of Pope Francis on his forehead looks on while waiting for the Pope to arrive in Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro
A Catholic faithful in Brazil bears a sticker of Pope Francis on his forehead. Ueslei Marcelino—Reuters
Pope Francis is projected on screens at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro
Images of Pope Francis projected onto screens at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro. Paulo Whitaker— Reuters
Pope Francis is pictured inside his plane before departing from Rio de Janeiro at Galeao Air Base
Departing Rio de Janeiro. Ricardo Moraes—Reuters
Brazil Pope Photo Gallery
A stray dog walks across the stage near the altar where Pope Francis celebrates the World Youth Day's closing Mass on the Copacabana beachfront. Victor R. Caivano—AP
Pope Francis in Brazil
Listening to confessions of young people in a park in Rio de Janeiro. L'Osservatore Romano—EPA
POPE FRANCIS MEETS PIACENZA PILGRIMS
Posing with youths in Saint Peter's Basilica.L'Osservatore Romano—EPA
Vatican, St. Peter's Square - General Audience of Pope Francis
Greeting the faithful on a rainy day during the General Audience.Fabio Frustaci—Eidon Press/Zuma Press
Pope Francis wears a firefighter helmet as he arrives to lead his Wednesday general audience in Saint Peter's square at the Vatican
Arriving to lead his General Audience in a firefighter's helmet.Stefano Rellandini—Reuters
Pope Francis is silhouetted against window light at the end of a meeting at the Vatican
A quiet moment after meeting with Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo at the Vatican.Max Rossi—Reuters
Pope Francis photographed in the Vatican, Rome, Italy in November-December, 2013. Pope Francis was chosen as TIME Magazine's 2013 Person of the Year.
Marking the 110th anniversary UNITALSI, a Catholic organization dedicated to helping the sick. Francesco Zizola—NOOR for TIME
Vatican Russia
A private Audience with Russian President Vladimir Putin. L'Osservatore Romano/AP
APTOPIX Vatican Cold Pope
Keeping warm during a General Audience. Alessandra Tarantino—AP
Pope Francis' General Audience
Comforting a disfigured man at the end of his General Audience. Claudio Peri—EPA
Pope Francis - General Audience - Nov. 20 2013
Blessing a sick man with deformed facial features. Evandro Inetti—Zuma Press
ITALY-VATICAN-POPE-VISIT-EPIPHANY
Visiting the parish of the Sant'Alfonso Maria de Liguori during the Epiphany day.L'Osservatore Romano—AFP/Getty Images
Pope Francis reacts as he leads a Wednesday general audience in Saint Peter's square at the Vatican
Reacting to devotees at a weekly General Audience.Alessandro Bianchi—Reuters
A dove released during an Angelus prayer conducted by Pope Francis, is attacked by a seagull at the Vatican
A seagull attacks a dove released during a prayer conducted by Pope Francis. Alessandro Bianchi—Reuters
A scarf thrown by faithful is seen on the face of Pope Francis during the general audience in Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican
A scarf is tossed at Pope Francis by a faithful. Tony Gentile—Reuters
Italy - Feature - First Pope Francis graffiti murales appears in Rome
Italian artist Mauro Pallotta's superhero rendering of Pope Francis in a street near St. Peter's Basilica.Alessandra Benedetti—Corbis
TOPSHOTS-VATICAN-RELIGION-POPE-AUDIENCE
Blowing a kiss to pilgrims gathered at Saint Peter's Square. Vincenzo Pinto—AFP/Getty Images
Obama - Pope Francis
Meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama in the private library of the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City.Vatican Pool/Contrasto/Redux
Italy - H.M Queen Elisabeth and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh meets Pope Francis
With Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at the Vatican.Alessandra Benedetti—Vatican Pool/Corbis
ITALY-VATICAN-POPE-MAUNDY--THURSDAY
A wind gust lifts Pope Francis's mantle as he arrives at the traditional Washing of the Feet during Holy Thursday. Alberto Pizzoli—AFP/Getty Images
ITALY-VATICAN-POPE-MAUNDY--THURSDAY
Kissing a man's at the traditional Washing of the Feet. Alberto Pizzoli—AFP/Getty Images
Vatican Pope
Visitors take photos of Pope Francis as he speaks from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. Michael Sohn—AP

The pattern continues in New York, where Pope Francis will begin his time with an evening prayer service at St. Patrick’s Cathedral before addressing the U.N. the next morning. From there, he will—again—go directly to an interfaith service at the 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center. It is another statement about the importance of solidarity, especially between Christians and Muslims in the face of global extremism. Pope Benedict visited Ground Zero to pray in 2008, but Francis is taking it to another level with an interfaith focus. He will then visit a Catholic elementary school in East Harlem, and celebrate mass in Madison Square Garden.

When Pope Francis goes to Philadelphia, the pattern shifts, but only slightly. The World Meeting of Families, a Catholic gathering of families every three years hosted this time in Philadelphia, was from the start the reason for his trip to the U.S. Here, Francis adds specifically political moments to a primarily pastoral visit. In addition to celebrating mass at the Cathedral Basilica, visiting the Festival of Families, and meeting the bishops at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Pope Francis will visit Philadelphia’s largest prison, the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility. What Pope Francis will do there remains to be seen, but his mere presence will both highlight high incarceration rates in the U.S. and make it hard to ignore the Catholic Church’s opposition to the death penalty.

The whole trip concludes with an outdoor mass on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, where Pope John Paul II celebrated mass in 1979.

Francis’ schedule is like a liturgy. It is a roadmap to guide the desired focus of, and communal participation in, his message. And the places he has chosen—Catholic Charities in Washington, a school in Harlem, an interfaith service at Ground Zero, a prison in Philadelphia—will likely end up saying as much about what Francis’ focus is as anything else.

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