JD Vance met with the Vatican Secretary of State Saturday during his visit the Vatican City on Easter weekend, according to The White House.
Vance is not scheduled to have an official meeting with Pope Francis, however, one outlet reported the two met privately.
A press release from the vice president’s office said Vance and Cardinal Parolin, who is the Catholic Church’s most senior official after the pope, discussed “Catholicism in the United States, the plight of persecuted Christian communities around the world, and President Donald Trump’s commitment to restoring world peace.”
The two also discussed their shared religious faith. Vance, who has a home in East Walnut Hills, converted to Catholicism six years ago at a church in Greater Cincinnati.
The official meeting comes one day after Vance and his family arrived in Vatican City and attended a Good Friday service at St. Peter’s Basilica. Vance also met with the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday.
News outlet: ‘Quick and private meeting’ between Vance and Pope Francis
Pope Francis and the Republican U.S. vice president have disagreed over the Trump administration’s immigration policy. According to USA Today, the pontiff has been critical of the administration’s mass deportation of migrants and has disputed Vance’s interpretation of theology.
There is no formal meeting scheduled between Vance and Pope Francis, according to the Catholic news site EWTN News.
The 88-year-old pontiff, who is recovering from a recent battle with life-threatening pneumonia, also did not attend the Good Friday service.
British outlet Sky News reported sources told them Vance and the pope had a “quick and private meeting” at the pope’s residence in Vatican City. The outlet said no further details have been released on the meeting.
Vance converted to Catholicism at Madeira church
Vance’s faith is strongly tied to Cincinnati. The Middletown native was raised nominally evangelical and explored atheism before converting to Catholicism in 2019 at St. Gertrude Priory, which is attached to a Dominican parish in Madeira.
Vance told The American Conservative that as he became more interested in faith, Catholicism was the practice that appealed most to him “intellectually.”
The vice president will be in Vatican City and Rome through Sunday, visiting cultural and religious sites. Vance may also attend the Vatican’s celebration of Easter in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, according to Reuters.
