CRS Report – Pope Francis and Selected Global Issues: Background for Papal Address to Congress, September 8, 2015.

“Pope Francis and Selected Global Issues: Background for Papal Address to Congress Congressional Research Service Summary Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio) assumed the papacy on March 13, 2013 , following the surprise resignation of Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger), who had served as pope since the death of St. Pope John Paul II (Karol Józef Wojtyła) in 2005. The pope, respectfully referred to as “Your Holiness,” serves as head of the Holy See (diocese) of Rome and as the leader of the world’s roughly 1.2 billion Catholics. He is the first pope elected from Latin America, the first Jesuit pope (a n order of priests founded by Ignatius Loyola) , and the first pope in recent times who spent much of his career serving as a pastor in poor areas far from Rome . Pope Francis has become a popular global leader who has focused attention on poverty and environmental issues, among others. Following a September 19-22 visit to Cuba, Pope Francis is scheduled to visit the United States from September 22-27. His visit will begin in Washington, DC ,and include a visit to the White House, a public mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and an address to Congress. Speaker of the House John Boehner invited Pope Francis to address a joint meeting of Congress based on his position as head of state of the Holy See (an international entity analogous to a sovereign state) and his “social teachings…that have prompted careful reflection and vigorous dialogue.”On September 24, 2015,Pope Francis will become the first pope to address a joint congressional session.”