Pope Leo meets with U.S. Vice President Vance, Secretary of State Rubio

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The day after his inauguration Mass, Pope Leo XIV had a closed-door meeting at the Vatican with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who gave him a Chicago Bears jersey and a letter from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Vance delivered the letter from President Trump and his wife Melania before the start of the meeting, according to a video edited and released by Vatican Media. The short video clip showed Vance handing a large envelope to the pope, telling him it was a letter “from the president and first lady inviting you to come …”. The rest of the sentence was cut.

The vice president also met May 19 with Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, Vatican foreign minister, after meeting with the pope, a Vatican statement said.

The Vatican press office released a communique outlining only what general themes were discussed during the “cordial talks held at the Secretariat of State” with Archbishop Gallagher. The two parties expressed their satisfaction with the “good bilateral relations” between them, and “the collaboration between church and state was discussed, as well as some matters of special relevance to ecclesial life and religious freedom.”

“Finally, there was an exchange of views on some current international issues, calling for respect for humanitarian law and international law in areas of conflict and for a negotiated solution between the parties involved,” the Vatican said.

The two U.S. leaders were then joined by their spouses and the larger U.S. delegation for photos and an exchange of gifts. 

One of the gifts from the U.S. delegation was a navy blue and orange jersey from the Chicago Bears football team with “Pope Leo XIV” written on the back. The new pope, who was born in Chicago, responded with, “Good choice,” when the vice president showed him the jersey, according to the Vatican Media clips.

Vance’s office said he also gave the pope the books, “The City of God” and “On Christian Doctrine,” both written by St. Augustine, the founder of the religious order the pope joined when he was 21.

Among the gifts Pope Leo presented was a bronze bas-relief of a flower blossoming with an inscription, which the pope read out loud to Vance, “Peace is a fragile flower,” according to the Vatican Media video.

As the pope presented a large book of colored photographs he was giving Vance, the pope was explaining one photo of the apostolic palace saying, “Pope Francis did not live (here) and I may live (there), which is right upstairs from here.”

Vance also told the pope, “The United States people are extremely excited about you,” to which the pope responded with an “oh,” a smile and a nod. 

According to the office of Vice President Vance, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was present for a portion of the closed-door meeting with the pope after Vance’s one-on-one.

The papal audience lasted 45 minutes, according to the vice president’s office.

Vance and Rubio were in Rome to represent the United States at Pope Leo’s inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square May 18. They were accompanied by their spouses and senior White House aides at the Mass, which drew more than 200,000 people.

Later May 18 Vance and Rubio also met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who also was in Rome for the pope’s inaugural Mass.

In a post on X, Vance said, “Our countries share the goal of ending unnecessary bloodshed in Ukraine, and we discussed updates on the ongoing negotiations for a ceasefire and lasting peace.”

This story was updated at 11:20 a.m.

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