Making History: Pope Francis Addresses Congress

WASHINGTON -- With approval ratings politicians in Congress can't begin to imagine, Pope Francis enjoyed a warm welcome to the United States ahead of his address before the legislative body.

His seemingly magnetic draw to the weak and a humble lifestyle in a world of excess have Americans clamoring for a chance to see him.

On Thursday, he became the first pontiff to address a joint meeting of Congress, a distinction the pope calls an "honor."

"I hope, as a brother of this country, to offer words of encouragement to those called to guide the nation's political future," he said.

House Speaker John Boehner, a Roman Catholic, prepared a special platform for the pope to greet the sea of Americans watching his address broadcast on monitors on the capitol lawn.

On Wednesday, The White House opened its gates to some 15,000 people for the pope's arrival ceremony.

"It was incredible!" Olga Rimola exclaimed. "It was amazing and I feel so blessed to listen to the pope and our president."

President Barack Obama said the pope reminds us that God's "most powerful message is mercy."

"In your humility, your embrace of simplicity, the gentleness of your words and the generosity of your spirit, we see a living example of Jesus' teachings," the president said.

In a move that pleased the White House, Pope Francis praised the president for working on cutting back air pollution as part of his plan to take on global warming.

"Climate change is a problem that can no longer be left to a future generation," the pontiff said, drawing a round of applause.

White House officials say they hope the pope's moral authority helps them advance policies high on their agenda, like climate change and immigration reform.

Still, they've been careful to distance themselves on issues where there's clear disagreement, such as gay marriage, birth control, and abortion.

Those are the issues the pope's more conservative supporters hope to hear about today on Capitol Hill.

Defending himself against conservative criticism, Pope Francis denied this week that he leans to the left, and added that he's never said anything beyond the social doctrine of the Catholic Church.

Despite efforts on both sides of the aisle to politicize the pope's words, some Catholics say they're staying above the fray.

"As a professing Catholic and a practicing Catholic we stay true in our ethics and we move forward and let people do their talking and we let our hearts and our faith speak for itself," one man said.

After leaving Washington, Pope Francis and his pope-mobile will travel to New York City and Philadelphia to wrap up his heavily watched visit to the United States.