Pope Francis will begin his first pilgrimage to the United States on Tuesday, September 22, 2015. He is scheduled to arrive in Washington, D.C., after making a three-day visit to Cuba. On Wednesday, Sept. 23, the Pope will meet with U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House. At 11:30 a.m. he will attend the midday prayer with U.S. bishops at Saint Matthew’s Cathedral in D.C. In the late afternoon, Pope Francis will canonize Blessed Junipero Serra at Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
The next day, the Pope will address a joint meeting of Congress. Then, he will visit St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in D.C. and Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington. He is scheduled to leave Washington, D.C. and arrive in New York at 5:00 p.m. Later, he will attend an evening prayer at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
On the morning on Friday, Sept. 25, Pope Francis will attend a United Nations General Assembly, and a multi-religious service at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, World Trade Center. In the evening, he will visit Our Lady Queen of Angels School in East Harlem and celebrate Mass at Madison Square Garden.
On Saturday, Sept. 26, the Pope will leave New York and arrive in Philadelphia, PA, around 9:30 a.m. From the airport, he will go to the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, where he will celebrate Mass. Later, he will pay a visit to Independence Mall and the Festival of Families at Benjamin Franklin Parkway, where he will attend a Prayer Vigil with the World Meeting of Families.
On the last day of his visit to the U.S., Pope Francis will begin by meeting with Bishops in St. Martin’s Chapel at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. Later that morning, he is scheduled to visit to Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility. In the afternoon, the Pope will celebrate Mass for the World Meeting of Families. Just before his departure to Rome, the Holy Father will meet with the organizers, volunteers and benefactors of the World Meeting of Families at Atlantic Aviation.
