Congressman Veasey Reflects On Pope Francis’ Address to Congress

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Marc Veasey, TX-33, released the following statement after Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic Church, addressed a Joint Meeting of Congress:

"Today, I had the privilege of witnessing history. Pope Francis' address to Congress challenged elected leaders to address the moral challenges of our generation with an open heart and a spirit of compassion and cooperation.

Pope Francis' evoked some of the greatest symbols of what America represents to the world. By highlighting the works of Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton, his Holiness has reminded us what motivates so many to leave their homelands and make the treacherous journey to the ‘land of dreams.' Their lives exemplified what our country can be at its best: a place where freedom, liberty in plurality and non-exclusion, social justice and rights of persons, and the capacity for dialogue prevail.

The Pontiff emphasized our country's history as a nation of foreigners and our fight for civil rights to remind us to embrace the most vulnerable in our society: the poor and the immigrant communities. I will carry Pope Francis' words with me as we move forward to address the problems that lay before us as a country such as reforming our broken immigration system, eradicating poverty and ensuring that all have a voice in our nation's democracy. As a representative elected to serve the American people, my greatest hope is that inaction on the pressing issues of our time will be converted to renewed cooperation. It is the only way we can carry on the legacy of America as the ‘land of dreams.' "