In a wide-ranging speech at the UN, Pope Francis touched on an array of hot-button topics, including the persecution of Christians, the Iran nuclear deal, drug trafficking -- "silently killing millions" -- and the rights of girls to an education.
On Friday, the head of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics will address the United Nations before leading an inter-faith service at the 9/11 Memorial and visiting a Catholic school in Harlem.
A day after meeting with President Barack Obama and enjoying a rapturous welcome from thousands of people on the streets of Washington, Francis became the first pontiff to address a joint session of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Pope Francis plunged into his first U.S. visit with gusto Wednesday, embracing the adulation of jubilant crowds across Washington even as he confronted controversy in remarks at the White House and a meeting of U.S. Catholic bishops.
Pope Francis arrived in the United States on Tuesday for his first visit -- a historic six-day trip to the spiritual home of capitalism after his tour of communist-ruled Cuba.
