Sep 22, 2015 06:58 AM EDT
Papal Visit 2015: A Guide To Pope Francis' US Visit

Pope Francis is travelling to the United States for the first time and will be stopping in Washington D.C., New York and Philadelphia for his 6-day visit.

The Huffington Post reports the Catholic leader will arrive at Joint Base Andrews at 4 PM, Tuesday, and will be preparing for various activities set for his purposeful visit.

President Barack Obama will meet Pope Francis when he visits the White House on Wednesday. A welcoming ceremony will be held at 9:15 AM on the South Lawn of the White House, followed by a private meeting with the president at 11:30 AM.

After their official meeting, the Pope will head to St. Matthew's Cathedral for midday prayer with the bishops. In the afternoon, a Mass of Canonization of Junipero Serra will be celebrated on the east portico of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.  

The Pope will give an address at the U.S. Congress joint session on Thursday, 9:20 AM, with a live public broadcast from the Capitol's West Front.

Before he departs for New York, Pope Francis will visit St. Patrick in the City and the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington for blessing, remarks and lunch with the clients of the St. Maria Meals Program of Catholic Charities.

Pope Francis will land John F. Kennedy International Airport on Thursday, 5PM and will head straight to St. Patrick's Cathedral for the evening prayer.

On Friday, he will be at the United Nations General Assembly before he attends the multi-religious service at 9/11 Memorial and Museum, World Trade Center. Representatives of Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, Evangelical, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and other faith groups will grace the event which also invited hundreds of members of the 9/11 community.

At 4 PM, the Pope will visit Our Lady Queen of Angels in East Harlem, followed by a procession through Central Park where tens of thousands of people are expected to see him in person.

Pope Francis will then hold a mass at the Madison Square Garden at 6 PM with limited tickets free of charge available in parishes in the Archdiocese of New York. Passes are also available at other dioceses in the New York State and Archdioceses of Newark and Bridgeport.

The Pope will arrive at Atlantic Aviation in Philadelphia on Saturday morning and will go straight to Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul for a mass at 10:30 AM.

At 4:45 PM, he will address themes on religious liberty and immigration to "ethnic apostolates and immigrant communities" at the historic Independence Mall.

In the evening, the Pope will attend the Festival of Families on Benjamin Franklin Parkway and will be open to the public except the 20th Street - Eakins Oval, which will be ticketed. Those who can't make it to the cathedral, Independence Mall and parkway may catch the live broadcast on Jumbotron screens across the city on the same day.

On his last day in the U.S., Pope Francis will meet with the bishops and cardinals at St. Martin's Chapel in St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. He will then visit prisoners and their families at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility before he holds a mass open to the public in conclusion of the World Meeting of Families on Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

The Pope will depart for Rome on Sunday, 8 PM.

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