Pope Francis Met Briefly With Vice President Vance on Sunday

April 21, 20256:42 AM ET. | Joe Hernandez | Rachel Treisman

Before he died, Pope Francis met briefly Sunday morning with Vice President Vance. Vance was in Italy over the weekend meeting with Italian officials and celebrating Easter with his family. Vance converted to Catholicism in 2019.

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The Holy See Press Office said the pair exchanged Easter greetings in a private meeting that lasted for a few minutes.

In February, Pope Francis warned that the Trump administration's effort to dramatically ramp up deportations was driving a "major crisis." The pope also appeared to criticize Vance directly for claiming that Catholic doctrine justified such policies.

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Some Twitter users were not very sympathetic toward JD on social media. ‘Imagine being so unbearable that the Pope drops dead immediately after meeting you,’ one wrote. ‘Francis’s kind heart was able to handle a bad case of pneumonia, but he couldn’t handle the evilness of JD Vance,’ another.

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In response, Vance said he would continue to defend his views. On Sunday, Vance told the Pope, "I know you have not been feeling great, but it's good to see you in better health." He added, "I pray for you every day."

Early Monday morning, after Francis' death was announced, Vance tweeted: "My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him."

"I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill," Vance wrote. "But I'll always remember him for the ... homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was really quite beautiful."

Source: npr

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The funeral for Pope Francis will be held on Saturday, as announced by the Vatican.

Pope Francis was placed in an open casket, wearing red robes, in the chapel of Casa Santa Marta, which served as his residence during his 12-year papacy. While seven popes are buried in the Basilica, Francis will be the first to be interred there since 1669. Crowds are visiting the church in Rome where the Pope will be laid to rest. Recent images show the arrival of cardinals, along with people carrying crosses and reciting prayers.

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The first official image of Pope Francis’ Tomb

Basilica of St. Mary Major, Rome. Simplicity is the new opulence. The crucifix reflects the one on his pectoral cross, which he carried throughout his papacy.

Here are the first images of the tomb, white and made of simple marble, perfectly in line with Pope Francis’ devotion to St. Francis, the saint of simplicity

The crucifix reflects the one on his pectoral cross, which he carried throughout his papacypic.twitter.com/IByV8niSeh

— Mambo Italiano (@mamboitaliano__) April 27, 2025