One day after becoming the first pope to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress, Pope Francis will deliver his message of morality to world leaders gathered in New York City for a U.N. General Assembly summit. Above, you’ll find a live-stream of his appearance. The pope is expected to arrive at the United Nations building at around 8:30 a.m., and deliver his official remarks closer to 10 a.m. Below, we’ll post updates on his speech and reactions to it. For more on the pope’s political viewpoints and other information about his visit to the United States, click here.
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10:49 a.m.: And that’s a wrap. A few final thoughts from Slate’s Eric Holthaus, who was playing close attention to the climate angle:
The pope beautifully and repeatedly tied the world’s most dire struggles back to lack of fundamental concern for the environment. But he was also just as firmly critical of the tendency for lip service to substitute for truly bold action, something the UN is known for, but is largely out of its control. Fifteen grand new goals on sustainable development are being launched at this General Assembly, but achieving them will be up to governments and their leaders. Let’s hope they pay attention to Francis’s guiding words.
10:45 a.m.: And Francis with the big finish: “The praiseworthy international juridical framework of the United Nations Organization and of all its activities, like any other human endeavor, can be improved, yet it remains necessary; at the same time it can be the pledge of a secure and happy future for future generations. And so it will, if the representatives of the States can set aside partisan and ideological interests, and sincerely strive to serve the common good…. Upon all of you, and the peoples you represent, I invoke the blessing of the Most High, and all peace and prosperity. Thank you.”
10:40 a.m.: We’re in the home stretch now. Francis calls back to his opening mention of his papal predecessors in front of the U.N.: “I would hope that my words will be taken above all as a continuation of the final words of the address of Pope Paul VI; although spoken almost exactly fifty years ago, they remain ever timely. ‘The hour has come when a pause, a moment of recollection, reflection, even of prayer, is absolutely needed so that we may think back over our common origin, our history, our common destiny. The appeal to the moral conscience of man has never been as necessary as it is today.’”
10:35 a.m.: Slate’s Juliana Jiménez Jaramillo with a few more insights:
Francis also remarked that “every creature, particularly a living creature, has an intrinsic value, in its existence, its life, its beauty and its interdependence with other creatures.” This criticism of the idea of man as the center of the Universe comes from his encyclical, which featured a chapter precisely on this, titled “Crises and Consequences of Modern Anthropocentrism”. It is also influenced heavily by the same beliefs that guided Thomas Merton and his followers, that of communion with nature as a way to come in contact with the divine.
10:32 a.m: Slate’s Juliana Jiménez Jaramillo offers a few thoughts on Pope Francis’ comments about the global economy:
Francis offered strong words for the IMF and World Bank, institutions viewed unfavorably in most of the developing world for imposing neoliberal policies in exchange for crippling debt, a controversial concept alien to many in the developed North. From his speech: “The need for greater equity is especially true in the case of those bodies with effective executive capability, such as the Security Council, the Financial Agencies and the groups or mechanisms specifically created to deal with economic crises. This will help limit every kind of abuse or usury, especially where developing countries are concerned. The International Financial Agencies should care for the sustainable development of countries and should ensure that they are not subjected to oppressive lending systems which, far from promoting progress, subject people to mechanisms which generate greater poverty, exclusion and dependence.”
10:15 a.m.: Pope Francis makes the case for the “right of the environment”: “First, because we human beings are part of the environment. We live in communion with it, since the environment itself entails ethical limits which human actions must acknowledge and respect. Man, for all his remarkable gifts … is at the same time a portion of these spheres. He possesses a body shaped by physical, chemical and biological elements, and can only survive and develop if the ecological environment is favorable. Any harm done to the environment, therefore, is harm done to humanity. … Second, because every creature, particularly a living creature, has an inherent value, in its existence, its life, its beauty and its interdependence with other creatures. … In all religions, the environment is a fundamental good.”
10:34 a.m.: The pope gives a shout out to the Iran deal: “The recent agreement reached on the nuclear question in a sensitive region of Asia and the Middle East is proof of the potential of political good will and of law, exercised with sincerity, patience and constancy. I express my hope that this agreement will be lasting and efficacious, and bring forth the desired fruits with the cooperation of all the parties involved.”
10:25 a.m.: Francis talks fundamental rights: “Government leaders must do everything possible to ensure that all can have the minimum spiritual and material means needed to live in dignity and to create and support a family, which is the primary cell of any social development. In practical terms, this absolute minimum has three names: lodging, labor, and land—and one spiritual name: spiritual freedom, which includes religious freedom, the right to education and other civil rights.
10:18 a.m.: Francis pivots from the environment to the poor: “The misuse and destruction of the environment are also accompanied by a relentless process of exclusion. … In effect, a selfish and boundless thirst for power and material prosperity leads both to the misuse of available natural resources and to the exclusion of the weak and disadvantaged, either because they are handicapped, or because they lack adequate information and technical expertise, or are incapable of decisive political action.” Holy segue!
10:15 a.m.: Pope Francis makes the case for the “right of the environment”: “First, because we human beings are part of the environment. We live in communion with it, since the environment itself entails ethical limits which human actions must acknowledge and respect. Man, for all his remarkable gifts … is at the same time a portion of these spheres. He possesses a body shaped by physical, chemical and biological elements, and can only survive and develop if the ecological environment is favorable. Any harm done to the environment, therefore, is harm done to humanity. … Second, because every creature, particularly a living creature, has an inherent value, in its existence, its life, its beauty and its interdependence with other creatures. … In all religions, the environment is a fundamental good.”
10:07 a.m.: Via Slate’s Eric Holthaus, who covered this topic before:
It’s worth noting that in the pope’s encyclical, his boldest proposal was for the creation of a “true world political authority” that would be tasked “to manage the global economy; to revive economies hit by the crisis, to prevent deterioration of the present and subsequent imbalances; to achieve integral and timely disarmament, food security and peace; to ensure environmental protection and pursuant to the regulations for migratory flows.”
10:04 a.m.: Francis begins with a shout-out to his predecessors who also spoke to the United Nations: Paul VI, John Paul II (twice), and Benedict XVI: “All of them expressed their great esteem for the organization, which they considered the appropriate juridical and political response to this moment of history, marked by our technical ability to overcome distances and frontiers and, apparently, to overcome all natural limits to the exercise of power.”
9:54 a.m.: U.N Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon introduces Pope Francis, noting that this is the first time that a pope has attended the opening of its general assembly: “Your holiness, thank you for making history. Thank you for demonstrating yet again your global stature as a man of faith for all faiths.”
9:48 a.m: Showtime:
9:35 a.m.: Little known fact: Pope Francis is actually just the opener for Shakira and Angelique Kidjo, both of whom will preform songs at the U.N. shortly after the main event is over. Shakira gave a little preview earlier this week:
9:22 a.m.: A brief snippet of the pope’s remarks to the U.N. staff from earlier: “Like so many people worldwide, you are concerned about your children, and education. You worry about the future of the planet and what kind of a world we will leave for future generations. But today and every day I would ask each of you whatever your capacity to care [for] one another. Be close to one another. Respect one another.” He also bless the crowd, adding “if any of you are not believers, to wish me well.”
9:05 a.m.: Pope-mobile, U.N.-style … in action!
8:58 a.m.: We’re still about an hour away from the main event, but that doesn’t mean we don’t already have some pope action. Francis has already appeared with U.N Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon outside the main chamber, where he delivered brief remarks in English and drew some lengthy cheers from the gathered crowd of U.N. staffers and others.
8:53 a.m: Pope-mobile, U.N.-style:
8:28 a.m.: There was a lot of climate hype ahead of Pope Francis’ speech to Congress yesterday. But, as my colleague Eric Holthaus noted, the pope’s message of environmental stewardship to Washington was a little underwhelming. He gave global warming only passing mention in his remarks, and didn’t even utter the words “climate change” at all. The climate, though, will likely feature more prominently in today’s U.N. speech, which comes a little more than two months before world leaders meet in Paris to try to hash out a global deal on climate change—and one day after news broke that China is set to announce a landmark cap-and-trade deal at home.
