Pope Francis to visit Capitol Hill

Every year during his 24-years in Congress, Ohio Republican, House Speaker and devout Catholic John Boehner has invited the leader of the Roman Catholic Church to Capitol Hill. Finally, Pope Francis agreed to a visit during his trip to the United States.

MUNTINLUPA, PHILIPPINES (Catholic Online) - As Pope Francis' visit to America draws near, many of the trip's details have begun to emerge. Among them was a confirmation of the meeting between Boehner and Pope Francis.

Politico reported that insiders claim devout Catholic, Boehner will have a rare one-on-one meeting with the pope. The Pontiff will be treated as a head of state and not as a religious leader.

Boehner and the pontiff will be joined by the House and Senate leaders at the conclusion of their meeting and Pope Francis will delivery a 20-minute speech in English.

News of the Pontiff's visit to Capitol Hill led to long preparations which included weekly meetings with the Capitol Police, the Sergeant at Arms of the House and Senate, the speaker's office and the Architect of the Capitol.

Although the House Republican leadership has been in touch with the Vatican during their lengthy preparations, they have yet to disclose the topic the Head of State of the Holy See will discuss.

Pope Francis is known to bring up a variety of topics such as poverty, immigration and the environment.

Pope Francis is expected to stay in Washington for 3 days.

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