Pope Francis will be speaking tomorrow on Independence Mall. I was fortunate to be able to get one ticket to the afternoon speech, which I’ve heard will focus on religious liberty, immigration, and identity in a time of globalization.

It’s incredibly meaningful to me that Pope Francis will visit Independence Hall, which is a physical symbol of our Declaration of Independence and its values. Christianity permeates the Declaration’s confident proclamation of some of the self-evident rights of man, but precisely how those rights are best secured for the people is a conversation that will continue for as long as we continue as a people.

It seems fitting to me that Pope Francis will contribute to this conversation tomorrow, even though I suspect some of the Founders would be aghast if they could have seen so far into the future as to witness a pope addressing the nation in front of the Pennsylvania State House.

I’m excited to be there.