Pope Leo XIV celebrated the contributions of Catholics and immigrants to the United States in an open letter to Americans for the country's 250th anniversary.
The letter, dated June 25 and released by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Friday, also highlighted the principles of religious freedom and the right to life.
Leo, the first U.S.-born pope, wrote that the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, "gave enduring voice to the ideals of liberty, equality, the pursuit of happiness, justice, and democratic self-government."
The pope called religious freedom "among the most cherished of these principles," writing that it is "central to the American promise, protecting both individual dignity and the peaceful coexistence of a diverse people."
That freedom has allowed the Catholic Church to flourish in the U.S., serving the nation in many fields including "education, the preferential care for the poor, healthcare, and basic social services," Leo wrote
The pope also underscored the importance for the country's history of the "God-given dignity of every human life." Recognizing that dignity means "safeguarding human life from its beginning at conception until natural death" and caring for the "vulnerable, the suffering, and the forgotten," he wrote.
It also means "welcoming, protecting, and assisting immigrants," who "have helped to shape the nation's character," Leo wrote.
The pope's letter to Americans closed with an invocation of the "Immaculate Conception, patroness of this country, that she will continue to watch over America and protect all who dwell therein."
