People of faith woke up to the terrible news of Pope Francis‘ death on Monday morning. The 88-year-old had been battling double pneumonia and illness since February and sadly passed on. He was the first Latin American and first Jesuit elected to the papacy.
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In his final days, the Pontiff remained outspoken against MAGA and the Donald Trump administration — and even chastised Vice President JD Vance in one of his last acts. You see, on Saturday, the Pope seemingly snubbed Vance and sent his deputies to meet. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Vatican’s foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, had a gathering with the VP in the Apostolic Palace where he was given a talking to about how the current administration’s policies on migrants. The Trump administration notably left that detail out of their recap.
They shared that Vance and Parolin “discussed their shared religious faith, Catholicism in the United States, the plight of persecuted Christian communities around the world, and President Trump’s commitment to restoring world peace.”
However, those migrant concerns were reflected in the Vatican statement, which read:
“There was an exchange of opinions on the international situation, especially regarding countries affected by war, political tensions and difficult humanitarian situations, with particular attention to migrants, refugees, and prisoners. Finally, hope was expressed for serene collaboration between the state and the Catholic Church in the United States, whose valuable service to the most vulnerable people was acknowledged.”
The Pope DID have a very brief meeting with Vance on Sunday — which was one of the final times the leader was seen publicly. He gave Vance gave Easter eggs for his children as well as a tie and rosaries. In all, the VP was on Vatican premises for 17 minutes. Francis wanted very little to do with him.
The Pope’s official Easter speech appeared to even directly slam the MAGA stance on immigrants. In part, the leader shared:
“How much contempt is stirred up at times towards the vulnerable, the marginalized and migrants.”
Hopefully the words were taken to heart.
FWIW, Vance did react to the leader’s death on X (Twitter), sharing:
“I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. 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. But I’ll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was really quite beautiful. May God rest his soul.”
Reactions, Perezcious readers?
[Image via MEGA/WENN]
