Pope Francis calls on Congress to abandon ‘hostility’ to immigrants

During introductory remarks as the first pope to address a joint meeting of Congress, Francis called on lawmakers to defend and preserve the dignity of all Americans, introducing himself as "a son of this great continent."

He spoke from the same dais where presidents deliver their State of the Union addresses. Behind him sat Vice President Joe Biden and House Speaker John Boehner, the first and second in line to the presidency, both Catholics.

"Each son or daughter of a given country has a mission, a personal and social responsibility," Francis said in his opening remarks. "Your own responsibility as members of Congress is to enable this country, by your legislative activity, to grow as a nation."

"Legislative activity is always based on care for the people," he said. "To this you have been invited, called and convened by those who elected you."

Francis also called for an end to the global arms trade, referring to it as "money drenched in blood," and praised recent efforts toward "dialogue to overcome historic differences," a nod to the thaw in relations between the U.S. and Cuba and to negotiations with Iran.

Lawmakers of all political backgrounds and religious affiliations eagerly welcomed the pope, pledging to pause from the bickering and dysfunction that normally divide them and hear him out. Outside, tens of thousands of spectators gathered on the West Lawn of the Capitol and beyond, and many more were watching on TV around the world.

Security was tight outside the building, with streets around the Capitol blocked off and a heavy police presence that rivaled an inauguration or State of the Union address by the president.

Before the pope's remarks, lawmakers of both parties busily sought political advantage from his stances, with Democrats in particular delighting in his support for action to overhaul immigration laws and combat global warming and income inequality. One House Republican back-bencher announced plans to boycott the speech over Francis' activist position on climate change, which the pontiff renewed alongside President Barack Obama on Wednesday.

But Boehner, a Republican and a former altar boy who invited the pope to speak after trying unsuccessfully to bring the two previous pontiffs to the Capitol, dismissed concerns that the politically engaged Francis would stir the controversies of the day.

"The pope transcends all of this," said Boehner, who met on his own with Francis before the speech. "He appeals to our better angels and brings us back to our daily obligations. The best thing we can all do is listen, open our hearts to his message and reflect on his example."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky welcomed the pope Thursday morning with an up-to-the-minute video that included images from Wednesday's parade. "Americans have watched the pope reach new and different audiences, both from within his flock and far beyond it," McConnell said.

For Congress, the pope was arriving at a moment of particular turmoil. A partial government shutdown looms next week unless lawmakers can resolve a dispute over funding for Planned Parenthood related to the group's provision of fetal tissue for research. Boehner is facing a brewing revolt from tea party members who have threatened to force a floor vote on whether he can keep his speaker post.

Francis steered clear of such controversies. For members of Congress, his visit may prove little more than a brief respite from their partisan warfare, offering moments of unusual solemnity, uplift and pomp but without fundamentally shifting the intractable gears of the U.S. political system.

There's little sign on Capitol Hill of significant action on the social justice issues dear to Francis' heart. But on Wednesday he said simply that in addressing Congress, "I hope, as a brother of this country, to offer words of encouragement to those called to guide the nation's political future in fidelity to its founding principles."

He enjoys approval ratings that are the envy of any U.S. politician as he has remade the image of the Catholic Church as being open and compassionate yet without changing fundamental church doctrine. Addressing a chamber full of elected officials Thursday, he may have been the most adept politician in the room.

After speaking in the House chamber, he was scheduled to stop by the Capitol's Statuary Hall and its statue of the Rev. Junipero Serra, the 18th century missionary whom Francis elevated to sainthood Wednesday, in the first canonization on U.S. soil.

Later he was due to stop at St. Patrick's Catholic Church and the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington before leaving for New York for more prayer services and a speech to the United Nations.

Al Jazeera with wire services