Sept. 24--REPORTING FROM WASHINGTON -- Intending to bring words of encouragement to a divided Congress, Pope Francis made a spirited case Thursday for the goodness of politics, drawing on church teachings and landmark moments in U.S. history to nudge lawmakers toward a more inspired professional pursuit.
The pope used his moral authority to weigh in on variety of U.S. political controversies, including immigration, income inequality, the death penalty and the environment.
Francis said his speech was for the entire nation, especially common workers and the elderly, and he urged legislators not to ignore the dispossessed.
"A political society endures when it seeks, as a vocation, to satisfy common needs by stimulating the growth of all its members, especially those in situations of greater vulnerability or risk," he said.
The pope challenged Congress to act with compassion in dealing with migrants from south of the border.
"Thousands of persons are led to travel north in search of a better life for themselves and for their loved ones, in search of greater opportunities. Is this not what we want for our own children?" he said. "We must not be taken aback by their numbers, but rather view them as persons, seeing their faces and listening to their stories, trying to respond as best we can to their situation."
He called business a "noble vocation, directed to producing wealth and improving the world" and acknowledged the necessity of exploiting natural resources. But he said environmental protection must be part of the equation and that now is the time "to avert the most serious effects of the environmental deterioration caused by human activity."
The address before a joint meeting of Congress was a historic first for a leader of the Roman Catholic Church, and the soft-spoken pontiff arrived at a House chamber where the partisan split was on full display, with Vice President Joe Biden to his one side and House Speaker John A. Boehner on the other.
As the pope did the day before at the White House, Francis sought to balance his views for a politically divided audience, discussing the importance of life and family in a way that appealed to Republicans, while leaning more heavily into the issues of immigration, climate change and income inequality, which have made him popular with Democrats. He called for an end of the death penalty.
The speech came as Republicans and Democrats are facing off over federal funding for Planned Parenthood, a conflict that threatens to shut down the government if a budget deal cannot be reached. Despite Francis' progressive stance on many issues, the Catholic Church has remained opposed to abortion and birth control.
His statement that most closely allied him with Republicans was in defense of traditional families -- clearly signaling the church's continuing opposition to gay marriage.
"I cannot hide my concern for the family, which is threatened, perhaps as never before, from within and without," he said. "Fundamental relationships are being called into question, as is the very basis of marriage and the family. I can only reiterate the importance and, above all, the richness and the beauty of family life."
The 78-year-old pontiff's message on the power of politics, the profession that defines Washington, was aimed squarely at the nearly 535 members of the House and Senate -- as well as the hundreds of thousands of onlookers gathered on the Capitol's West Lawn.
Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) refused to attend the address to protest what he said was the pope's leftist activism on such issues as immigration and global warming. In addition to Biden and some members of the Supreme Court, seven presidential candidates also attended.
Francis invoked historical lessons from American icons Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr., appealing to a sense of American exceptionalism that resonated with lawmakers.
"You are called to defend and preserve the dignity of your fellow citizens in the tireless and demanding pursuit of the common good, for this is the chief aim of all politics," the pope said, speaking in English from prepared notes.
"Politics is, instead, an expression of our compelling need to live as one, in order to build as one the greatest common good: that of a community which sacrifices particular interests in order to share, in justice and peace, its goods, its interests, its social life," he said.
In Congress, 30% of lawmakers are Catholic but, like many members of the Catholic Church in the United States, they are more likely to pick and choose parts of the pope's message to follow than adhere fully to his teachings.
The Argentine pope thanked the Congress for the opportunity to appear, saying, "I would like to think that the reason for this is that I, too, am a son of this great continent, from which we have all received so much and toward which we share a common responsibility."
Thousands of people gathered outside the Capitol to watch the historic address on Jumbotrons. Some chanted "USA" and sang "God Bless America."
"I came today because the pope's message of justice and peace resonates with me, as well as his Jesuit values -- competence, conscience and compassion," said 37-year-old Jose Cabrales of Watsonville, Calif., whose friend called up his congressman to acquire their tickets.
Cabrales and his friends set their alarms to 2 a.m., arriving at the Capitol at 3:30 a.m. Also in attendance were his friend's parents, who traveled from Anaheim.
Jonathan Soo Hoo, 23, from Mill Valley, Calif., a current law school and master's student at George Washington Law School, spoke of the pope as "a tremendous leader on issues relating to faith, and still, to this day, serves as a beacon for morality and spirituality that should inspire everyone."
"We can all learn something from listening and internalizing the lessons he speaks of from the holy book," Soo Hoo said.
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UPDATES
8:21 a.m.: This article has been updated with additional remarks by Pope Francis.
7:37 a.m.: This article has been updated with additional remarks by Pope Francis.
7:10 a.m.: This article has been updated with the arrival of Pope Francis at Capitol Hill.
This article was originally published at 6:45 a.m.
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