Pope Francis Visits Cuba

"Democracy Now!" airs weekdays at 9 a.m. PT on KCET.

Ahead of his first U.S. visit, Pope Francis celebrated mass in Cuba Sunday before hundreds of thousands of worshipers in Havana's Revolution Square. Born in Argentina, Francis is the first Latin American pope. He is widely praised in Cuba for helping to broker secret talks with Washington that resulted in the further normalization of U.S.-Cuban relations, and praised the detente between the two countries as "an example of reconciliation for the entire world." The pope's homily in Havana included no direct political message besides urging the successful conclusion of Colombia peace talks that have been taking place in Cuba for nearly three years.

On Tuesday, Pope Francis arrives in Washington, where he will address Congress and meet with President Obama. "Democracy Now!" speaks about Pope Francis' Cuba-U.S. trip with Carlos Alzugaray Treto, a former Cuban diplomat and former Havana University professor; and Andrea Bartoli, dean of the School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University and member of the Community of Sant'Egidio, a liberal Catholic group active in international affairs.