Francis is slated to make his first visit to the U.S.in September, traveling to Washington, D.C., New York and Philadelphia.

A Gallup poll published on Wednesday reported that approval ratings for Pope Francis in the U.S., which had been at an all-time high of 90 percent in March according to a Pew Poll, had sunk to 59 percent, with U.S. conservatives polling the lowest. The number of Americans who have never heard of or have no opinion of Pope Francis jumped from 16 percent in February 2014 to 25 percent this month.

Some 45 percent of conservatives now view the pope favorably, down sharply from 72 percent a year ago.

Some 71 percent of US Catholics said they approved of the pope, down from 89 percent a year earlier.

While no one will define the papacy of Francis as one concerned with the welfare of the Caribbean specifically, his actions on issues of importance in the region will no doubt have an impact that engenders goodwill between the Caribbean and the Vatican. As an archbishop, he was known for living in a simple apartment, taking the bus to work, and cooking his own meals. When asked about homosexuality, he responded: “Who am I to judge?” in Sepember 2013. Francis once said of gays and lesbians. In addition, conservatives continuously disagree with the pope’s recent criticism of capitalism, climate change and income inequality.

It was enough to set some conservatives teeth on edge. Pope Francis on Sunday commemorated the 100th anniversary of the massacre of as many as 1.5 million Armenians as “the first genocide of the 20th century”, words that could draw an raging reaction from Turkey. “And he’s been saying things that annoy both sides”. “But I don’t get economic policy from my bishops or my cardinals or my pope”.

Popular conservative commentator and active Catholic Ed Morrissey, who writes on the Hot Air blog, said he thinks Francis is coming out of an initial “honeymoon period” – for everyone. “I’m not sure it’s a great idea for him to be involving himself into micro-economics and the same with climate change”.

The pope’s image has also taken a hit from political liberals and moderates. But the pope is getting less love from the left, too.

It also noted that Francis’ ratings are still higher than those of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, who bottomed out at 40 percent in 2010.

Among those excited by the pope’s upcoming arrival was Catholic Charities Corporate Controller Fred Sarran, whose bright blue yarmulke, or skullcap, stood out in the crowd of almost 50.

“These poll numbers are not surprising and as a matter of fact you could even say there is an upside to them in the sense that it shows people are listening to the pope”, Bretzke said. Pope John Paul II also received a boost from his 1993 and 1999 visits to the US.

Pope Francis is scheduled to come to the United States in September this year, where he will meet President Barack Obama, give a speech to Congress, and visit the UN.