--- title: Pope Francis Will Meet President Barack Obama at the White House description: Pope Francis will meet with President Obama during his trip to the United States later this year, the White House announced Thursday. canonical: https://time.com/3759771/pope-francis-white-house/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-26T14:43:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:41:42.362Z article:section: Politics og:title: Pope Francis Will Visit the White House og:description: The two met last year when Obama visited the Vatican. og:url: https://time.com/3759771/pope-francis-white-house/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3b4cea1a2494e170/69878564428a9e279ccc7d3f/pope.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Pope Francis arrives under heavy rain, for his weekly general audience in St Peter's square at the Vatican on March 25, 2015. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Pope Francis Will Visit the White House twitter:description: The two met last year when Obama visited the Vatican. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3b4cea1a2494e170/69878564428a9e279ccc7d3f/pope.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Pope Francis Will Visit the White House > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Obama Meets The Pope [Watch (HLS stream): Obama Meets The Pope](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/KevlmjpV.m3u8) (2:12)  _Published 2014-03-27. For just the ninth time, a U.S. president sat down with the pope at the Vatican. While the two were set to discuss global poverty and inequality, calming strained relations between Obama and Catholic leadership also seemed to be a goal._  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Mar 26, 2015 2:43 PM UTC  Pope Francis arrives under heavy rain, for his weekly general audience in St Peter's square at the Vatican on March 25, 2015. Pope Francis arrives under heavy rain, for his weekly general audience in St Peter's square at the Vatican on March 25, 2015. Gabriel Bouys—AFP/Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Mar 26, 2015 2:43 PM UTC Pope Francis will meet with President Obama during his trip to the United States later this year, the White House announced Thursday. The Pope will visit the White House on September 23, according to a statement from White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest, where Obama and Pope Francis will speak about “caring for the marginalized and the poor; advancing economic opportunity for all; serving as good stewards of the environment; protecting religious minorities and promoting religious freedom around the world; and welcoming and integrating immigrants and refugees into our communities.” The two leaders met last year when Obama visited the Vatican in March 2014\. The upcoming visit in September is part of a larger trip for Pope Francis; during his first visit to the United States as Pope, he will also be [addressing Congress](http://time.com/3697386/pope-francis-congress/) and [speaking at the U.N](http://time.com/3750888/pope-francis-united-nations/). The trip is set to take place from September 22-27. _Read next:_ [_Why Pope Francis Is Obsessed With Mary_](http://time.com/3758189/pope-francis-mary-feast-of-the-annunciation-jesus/?iid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) ## Transcript A historic meeting. For just the ninth time, a US President sat down with the Pope at the Vatican. [ NOISE ]. Intimate handshake with about 100 photographers snapping pictures every second. [ LAUGH ] And now, the two will enter the Pope's study. Again, cameras allowed in there for just a minute or so. President Obama and Pope Francis were very cordial as cameras documented their first moments together, a little after 5 am Eastern Time. The President continually gave the Pontiff his praise. Saying, wonderful meeting you. I'm a great admirer, thank you, sir Thank you. He said that he was a man who didn't just preach the gospel, but who lived it. Said the Pope was right to focus global poverty around the world. Right to say that too many people had been left behind in the process of globalization. But while US's first African- American president and the first ever Latin Pope, could agree on issues every world leader would likely follow. The two have their differences, possibly discussed away from cameras. The President's tenure has seen strained relations with Catholic leadership. Particularly on issues of abortion and mandated contraception options. Both of which have come up during the President's fight for the Affordable Care Act, and have drawn criticism from American bishops. CNN's Ben Wedeman pointed out the National Health Service in Italy provides free abortions and contraception. This goes on in the Pope's front yard. So there's not an awful lot he can do, except voice his objections regarding what goes, on across the Atlantic in the United States. Same sex marriage is also an area Obama and the Pope don't see eye to eye on. But officials reported a positive sit- down that lasted 52 minutes, instead of the planned 30 or 40. As we've all seen, the Pope has become an overwhelmingly popular figure in his first year at the Vatican. With a favorable view from nearly 3 4ths of Americans late last year. That is something Obama would love to channel. As a writer for the National Catholic Reporter put it, Conservatives will predict that President Barack Obama will get a tongue lashing. Liberals will have Obama and Francis singing a duet. Thanks for watching. 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