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STORY: U.S. President Barack Obama highlighted growing gaps between rich and poor ahead of his first meeting on Thursday (March 27) with Pope Francis, an event that was expected to focus on the fight against poverty and skirt moral controversies over abortion and gay rights.
As he arrived at the Vatican, Obama and his delegation were led past the ceremonial Swiss Guard through a richly frescoed hall before being escorted into a room where he and the pope shook hands warmly.
Since his election a year ago, Pope Francis has several times criticised unbridled capitalism, the excesses laid bare by the global financial crisis, and the growing gap between the rich and poor, even in developed countries.
Obama has repeatedly praised the pope for his compassion and emphasis on helping the poor, and the meeting could help to give impetus to some of his initiatives back home, such as boosting the middle class and helping low-income American
