Pope Francis had much to say during his apostolic visit to the U.S. Sept. 22-27.

He spoke to millions in person, through broadcast and social media. His messages were heard by clergy, religious, lay people, Catholics and non-Catholics.

Bishop David Malloy, who personally greeted the Holy Father during his visit to Washington, D.C., told The Observer that he hoped people would find inspiration amongst the many speeches and stops of the pope’s visit here.

“The gestures of the Holy Father were as significant as his talks,” Bishop Malloy said. “He spoke about religious freedom, the family, the environment and economic justice. But he visited sisters who care for the elderly, prisoners in jail, a school and Catholic Charities. Each moment was intended to stir up our faith.”

During his six-day visit he spoke on pretty much every topic one could imagine — poverty, immigration, politics, religious freedom, responsibility of individuals and families, just to name a few.

The Holy Father’s trip began in Washington, D.C., where he met with President Obama, with U.S. bishops, spoke to Congress, canonized a new saint, Junipero Serra, and visited Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.

Pope Francis then flew to New York City where he prayed vespers at St. Patrick Cathedral, addressed the United Nations General Assembly, participated in a multi-religious service at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center, met with staff and children at Our Lady Queen of Angels School in East Harlem, processed through Central Park and celebrated Mass at Madison Square Garden.

The Holy Father then moved on to Philadelphia to participate in the World Meeting of Families, the true cornerstone of his visit to the U.S.

In the City of Brotherly love, Pope Francis celebrated Mass at the Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, visited Independence Mall and the Festival of Families, met with bishops at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, visited the inmates at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, paid a surprise visit to Jesuit-run St. Joseph University and capped off his visit with Mass at the World Meeting of Families at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

Among the millions traveling thousands of miles and waiting in long lines for hours and hours just to catch a glimpse or be in the presence of the popular pope were people from the Diocese of Rockford.

Bishop Malloy was among the few who met Pope Francis personally as a representative of Region Seven for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He was one of the 35 prelates selected to represent all the bishops of the U.S.

What did the Bishop of Rockford say to the successor of Peter?

“I told him the priests and faithful of the Diocese of Rockford asked me to assure him of their prayers and love for him,” Bishop Malloy told The Observer.

The meeting between the bishops and the pope at St. Matthew Cathedral was just one of the many events streamed live on the USCCB website and linked to the Rockford Diocese website.

While Bishop Malloy was in Washington he sent photos and messages relayed on the diocesan Facebook and Twitter feeds.

But the highlight of the papal visit, Bishop Malloy said was that “The Holy Father said from the beginning that he wanted to highlight the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia. I think that was a key to understanding all of the other moments such as the speech to Congress and to the United Nations.”

Bishop Malloy’s summation was affirmed as Pope Francis gave his homily at the closing Mass for the World Meeting of Families. At that Mass the pope held up the family as vital to building the church for the future. He said love must be freely shared for faith to grow.

“That is why our families, our homes, are true domestic churches. They are the right place for faith to become life, and life to become faith,” he said.

“Little gestures” of love exist daily in the lives of family and serve to carry on God’s love as well, Pope Francis explained.

“These little gestures are those we learn at home, in the family. They get lost amid all the other things we do, yet they do make each day different. They are the quiet things done by mothers and grandmothers, by fathers and grandfathers, by children. They are little signs of tenderness, affection and compassion,” he said.

“Like the warm supper we look forward to at night, the early lunch awaiting someone who gets up early to go to work. Homely gestures. Like a blessing before we go to bed, or a hug after we return from a hard day’s work. Love is shown by little things, by attention to small daily signs which make us feel at home.”

Pope Francis asked the worshipers to consider how they share God’s love with people in their families and in the world around them.

“What kind of world do we want to leave to our children?” he asked, referencing a line in his encyclical “Laudato Si’, On Care for Our Common Home.”

“Our common house can no longer tolerate sterile divisions,” he continued. “The urgent challenge of protecting our home includes the effort to bring the entire human family together in the pursuit of a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change.”

The pope asked the congregation to consider how they treat each other in their own home. “Do we shout or do we speak to each other with love and tenderness? That’s a good way of measuring our love.”

Calling the church to renew faith in the word of God, the pope said people can live prophetic lives as a “kind of miracle in today’s world.”

“Would that we could all be prophets. Would that all of us could be open to miracles of love for the sake of all the families of the world, and thus overcome the scandal of a narrow, petty love, closed in on itself, impatient of others,” he said.

Now that the crowds have cleared and the Holy Father is back at home in Vatican City, many both in and outside the Catholic faith are still digesting the pope’s words during his visit.

Bishop Malloy said the impact of the apostolic visit has already begun.

“The visits of the Holy Fathers to the United States have always been a time of national reflection as well as personal renewal. I received an email already about a man moved to embrace the Catholic faith because of Pope Francis’s visit. I hope others will find their faith deepened,” he said.

(Story includes report from Catholic News Service)