Obama and Pope Francis to meet for first time

March 26,2014: US President Barack Obama is paying a visit to Pope Francis in the Vatican on Thursday, the first meeting between the two leaders. Despite differences on several moral issues, Obama will find in Pope Francis a welcome ally on issues of poverty and social justice. Since his election a year ago, Pope Francis has several times criticized unbridled capitalism, the excesses laid bare by the global financial crisis, and the growing gap between the rich and poor, even in developed countries. For his part, Obama has repeatedly praised Francis for his compassion and emphasis on helping the poor. The White House said Obama wanted to discuss "pressing global challenges such as lack of economic mobility and opportunity," adding that the Pope's voice was "a crucial one as we look around the world at areas of conflict, religious persecution, and poverty". U.S. Church officials want Pope Francis to visit the United States for a meeting of Catholic families in Philadelphia in 2015, and Obama may extend an open invitation, a U.S. Church official said.
The March 27th meeting between Obama and Pope Francis is the 28th between a sitting U.S. president and a pope, involving 12 presidents and 6 popes. The first such meeting was between president Woodrow Wilson and Pope Benedict XV, in the Vatican on January 4, 1919, and the last one was between Obama and Pope Benedict XVI, in the Vatican on July 10, 2009. Source Varie