Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereig ...

's visit to the United States took place from April 15, 2008 to April 20, 2008. It was his only visit to the United States. It was officially titled the
Apostolic Visit to the United States of America and to the Seat of the United Nations
. It was the sixth official papal visit to the United States since the U.S. established full diplomatic relations with the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

in 1984. In addition to his 1979 visit,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

visited the United States in 1987, 1993, 1995, and 1999.

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

visited the United States in 2015. The Pope's visit included meetings with

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

, an address to the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Cur ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, a visit to

Ground Zero In relation to nuclear explosions and other large bombs, ground zero (also called surface zero) is the point on the Earth's surface closest to a detonation. In the case of an explosion above the ground, ''ground zero'' is the point on the ground ...

, and Masses at

Nationals Park Nationals Park is a baseball stadium along the Anacostia River in the Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Home to Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals since its completion in 2008, it was the first LEED-certified green major pro ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

and

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the origi ...

in New York City, among other activities.

Preparation

The visit was announced on November 12, 2007 by Archbishop

Pietro Sambi Pietro Sambi (27 June 1938 – 27 July 2011) was an Italian Roman Catholic prelate who served in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1969 until his death in 2011. He had the rank of archbishop and the title of nuncio from 1985, fulfilling ...

to the

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

Visit

April 15 (Washington)

The Pope arrived at

Andrews Air Force Base Andrews Air Force Base (Andrews AFB, AAFB) is the airfield portion of Joint Base Andrews, which is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force. In 2009, Andrews Air Force Base merged with Naval Air Facility Washington to form Joint Ba ...

outside Washington on April 15, 2008, greeted by President Bush and cheering crowds. This was the first time any president had gone to the base to greet a foreign dignitary, as presidents customarily wait for visitors at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800 ...

April 16 (Washington)

The Pope was formally received at the White House on April 16. Over 9,000 people gathered on the

South Lawn The South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C., is directly south of the house and is bordered on the east by East Executive Drive and the Treasury Building, on the west by West Executive Drive and the Old Executive Office Building, and ...

of the White House, including thousands of members of the public who got free tickets in a lottery-type drawing, and another 4,000 without tickets to the ceremony lined the streets around the White House to see his

motorcade A motorcade, or autocade, is a procession of vehicles. Etymology The term ''motorcade'' was coined by Lyle Abbot (in 1912 or 1913 when he was automobile editor of the ''Arizona Republican''), and is formed after ''cavalcade'', playing off of ...

. The crowd sang " Happy Birthday" to the Pope, who turned 81 years old that day. The Pope addressed the crowd in English, saying he had "great respect for this vast pluralistic society" and ended by saying "God bless America". In his speech, Bush said the visit was a reminder to Americans to "distinguish between simple right and wrong", saying, "We need your message to reject this dictatorship of relativism and embrace a culture of justice and truth." He told the Pope that in America, "you'll find a nation that welcomes the role of religion in the public square... a world where some evoke the name of God to justify acts of terror and murder and hate, we need your message that God is love. And embracing this love is the surest way to save man from falling prey to the teaching of fanaticism and terrorism." After the ceremony, Bush and the Pope met in the

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval-shaped room ...

, where Bush presented him with a birthday cake. During their private meeting in the Oval Office, the Pope expressed his concerns to Bush about the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

and

illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwa ...

in the country. Afterwards, the Pope went to the

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a large minor Catholic basilica and national shrine in the United States in Washington, D.C., located at 400 Michigan Avenue Northeast, adjacent to Catholic University. ...

, where he addressed American

bishops A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

. Bush hosted a state dinner at the White House later that evening for visiting cardinals, bishops and various dignitaries.

April 17 (Washington)

The Pope celebrated

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementa ...

at the newly built Nationals Park in Washington, home to the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

team. 46,000 people attended the Mass at the stadium, which has an official

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of about 41,000. 200,000 requests for tickets, which were free, had been submitted prior to the mass.Elsibai, Nadin
"Pope Benedict Says Mass Before 47,000 in New Washington Stadium"

Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and ...

April 17, 2008 Retrieved August 17, 2011 Those in attendance included 14 cardinals, 250 bishops, and 1,300 priests. The altar was set up in the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball and ...

and live video of the Mass was shown on the scoreboard. In his homily, the Pope urged American Catholics to "foster healing and reconciliation" in the wake of the child sex abuse scandal. After the Mass, he went to the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U.S ...

to address representatives from American Catholic universities, diocesan schools, and others about the role of the Church in education. After that, he went to the university's

Pope John Paul II Cultural Center The Saint John Paul II National Shrine is a national shrine in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Knights of Columbus. It is a place of prayer for Catholics and welcomes people of all faiths. The Shrine houses a permanent exhibit called ''A Gift o ...

to meet privately with about 200 representatives of

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, and Hinduism to promote interfaith dialogue.

April 18 (New York)

The Pope addressed the

at the

UN Headquarters zh, 联合国总部大楼french: Siège des Nations uniesrussian: Штаб-квартира Организации Объединённых Наций es, Sede de las Naciones Unidas , image = Midtown Manhattan Skyline 004.jpg , im ...

in New York. He praised the UN as a defender of

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hum ...

, but cautioned that it must be acknowledged that human rights come from God. He made a historic visit to a Jewish

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worsh ...

in New York, the first visit by any Pope to a Jewish place of worship in America. The visit fell on the eve of

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the The Exodus, Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan, the first month of Aviv, or ...

. He said he found it "moving to recall that Jesus as a young boy heard the words of Scripture and prayed in a place such as this."

April 19 (New York)

The Pope visited St. Patrick's Cathedral, where he celebrated Mass. In his homily, he spoke of the child sex abuse scandal and called for healing. He met with disabled children and their families then led a youth rally of over 20,000 teenagers and young adults at St. Joseph's Seminary in

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enum ...

April 20 (New York)

The Pope visited Ground Zero, the site of the World Trade Center towers which were destroyed in the

September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

. He prayed for the victims of the 9/11 attacks and met with a small group of relatives of the victims as well as a handful of

first responders A first responder is a person with specialized training who is among the first to arrive and provide assistance or incident resolution at the scene of an emergency, such as an accident, disaster, medical emergency, structure fire, crime, or ter ...

and survivors. He blessed the site, lit a candle, and gave a prayer for the dead. He prayed for "eternal light and peace" for those killed and for healing for their families. The Pope said Mass to a crowd of nearly 60,000 at Yankee Stadium, home of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

. Over 200,000 had requested tickets, which were free, for the event. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' said the crowd "roared with all the sustained excitement of spectators at a pennant-clinching game." The altar was set up on second base. In his homily, he said the unwavering truth of the Catholic Church's message guarantees respect for the dignity of all human life, "including the most defenseless of all human beings, the unborn child in the mother's womb." The Mass marked the third time a Pope had visited the stadium, a record for any venue in the United States. (

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

celebrated Mass at the stadium in 1965, and

celebrated Mass there in 1979.Hoch, Brya
"Yankee Stadium set to host Pope"

MLB.com MLB.com is the official site of Major League Baseball and is overseen by Major League Baseball Advanced Media, L.P. (a subsidiary of MLB). MLB.com is a source of baseball-related information, including baseball news, statistics, and sports column ...

April 17, 2008 Retrieved August 17, 2011) MLB changed the Yankees schedule to accommodate the Mass, resulting in the Yankees playing 18 of their 20 games in April on the road, the most in one month in MLB history.

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He is currently the oldest living former ...

hosted a farewell ceremony for the Pope at

John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport (colloquially referred to as JFK Airport, Kennedy Airport, New York-JFK, or simply JFK) is the main international airport serving New York City. The airport is the busiest of the seven airports in the New ...

attended by 3,000 people. After a final speech, he boarded a specially chartered

Alitalia Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia (), was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. The ai ...

plane with the callsign "Shepherd One" and touched down at

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg ...

's Ciampino International Airport at 10:40 AM local time."Pope arrives home from US trip"

Google News Google News is a news aggregator service developed by Google. It presents a continuous flow of links to articles organized from thousands of publishers and magazines. Google News is available as an app on Android, iOS, and the Web. Google rel ...

April 20, 2008 Retrieved August 17, 2011

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United States 2008 in the United States 2008 in New York (state) 2008 in New York City 2008 in Washington, D.C. 2008 in Christianity April 2008 events in the United States Diplomatic visits by heads of state Diplomatic visits to the United States Benedict XVI, United States History of Catholicism in the United States Holy See–United States relations Pope Benedict XVI Presidency of George W. Bush