[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 60 (Wednesday, April 16, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E626-E627]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 WELCOMING THE POPE'S VISIT AND HOPING IT WILL FURTHER THE PROGRESSIVE 
                                 AGENDA

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 16, 2008

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to warmly and reverently 
welcome Pope Joseph Alois Ratzinger to the United States--

[[Page E627]]

making his stay at our esteemed capital, the District of Columbia, as 
well as my home State of New York. This country boasts a strong 
Catholic tradition, home to the third-largest Catholic population in 
the world at approximately 66 million followers, and has generated a 
fount of enthusiasm at this, his first visit to American soil as Pope. 
The 265th reigning Pope will hold mass at the Nationals and Yankee 
stadiums, meet with the President at the White House, address the 
United Nations, and pray at the Ground Zero site in lower Manhattan. 
May he enjoy a safe and spiritually fulfilling trip.
  It is my wish that this Pope's commitment to progressive causes--
prime among them the proliferation of peace and socioeconomic justice--
ignites that noteworthy agenda in this country. He has called for 
peaceful resolutions to global conflicts, publicly expressing his 
conscientious opposition to the war in Iraq, and has bravely noted that 
all are entitled to at least the bare necessities of life: A roof 
overhead, food for nourishment, access to medicines. These are basic 
human rights and entitlements that ought to be made sacrosanct in our 
society.

                          ____________________