Thousands of people gathered on the lawn of Catholic University in Washington, D.C. Wednesday to witness Pope Francis canonize a Spanish missionary, the first canonization in the United States.
Gerald Fogarty, University professor of Religious Studies, was able to attend the historic event.
“I wanted to be there as a historian,” said Fogarty, who has written extensively on American Catholicism.
Francis canonized Father Junipero Serra, who brought Catholicism to California in the 18th century.
Fogarty noted the selection both “was and wasn’t a good idea” because of Serra’s questioned treatment of Native Americans.
Overall, the pope’s six-day trip of the United States has come at an uncertain time for the American Catholic Church, Fogarty said.
Francis — the first pope from the Americas to hold the papal position — is probably more familiar with aspects culture in the United States because of his Latin-American background, Fogarty said.
“I think he’s going to get an appreciation that we’re not all evil capitalists, we do provide charitable aid,” he said.
Fogarty described the overall sentiment of the service, emphasizing the impressive size of the crowd that gathered.
“By picking up a light theme, he challenged both sides,” Fogarty said. “So I’d say the crowd at Catholic University was very enthusiastic.”
During his time in the nation’s capital, Pope Francis also visited the White House to meet with President Barack Obama, spoke to a joint meeting of Congress, visited the District’s oldest Catholic Church and blessed a meal at Catholic Charities.
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