The Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, briefly met with Pope Francis on Sunday to exchange Easter greetings, after both clashed remotely over the Trump administration’s deportation plans for migrants.
Vance’s caravan entered the Vatican City through a side gate and parked near the hotel where Francis resides while Easter Mass was being celebrated in St. Peter’s Square. Francis, who has significantly reduced his workload to recover from a near-fatal bout of pneumonia, delegated the celebration of the Mass to a cardinal.
The Vatican reported that they met for a few minutes at the Domus Santa Marta “to exchange Easter greetings.” Vance’s office said they met, but did not provide further details. In total, Vance’s entourage was on Vatican territory for 17 minutes.
Vance and the Pope have had strong disagreements about migration and Donald Trump’s government plans to deport immigrants en masse. Francis has made caring for migrants a distinctive feature of his papacy.
A few days before being hospitalized in February, the pope criticized the deportation plans of the Trump administration, warning that they would deprive migrants of their inherent dignity. In a letter to the American bishops, Francis also seemed to directly respond to Vance for claiming that Catholic doctrine justified such policies.
Vance has acknowledged Francis’s criticisms, but has said he will continue to defend his points of view. During an appearance on February 28 at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, Vance did not specifically address the issue, but described himself as a “baby Catholic” and acknowledged that there are “things about faith that I do not know.”
Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, met on Saturday with the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Archbishop Paul Gallagher.
Vance’s office said that he and Parolin “discussed their shared religious faith, Catholicism in the United States, the challenging situation of persecuted Christian communities around the world, and President Trump’s commitment to restoring world peace.”
The Vatican, for its part, stated that there was an “exchange of opinions” including on migrants and refugees and current conflicts.
The Holy See has responded cautiously to the Trump administration while seeking to continue productive relationships in line with its tradition of diplomatic neutrality. It has expressed concern over the government’s crackdown on migrants and cuts in international aid, insisting on peaceful resolutions to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.