JD Vance Meets Pope Francis in Vatican Amid Pontiff’s Recovery

U.S. Vice President JD Vance met briefly with Pope Francis at the Casa Santa Marta on Sunday, where the 88-year-old pontiff is recuperating from double pneumonia following a 38-day hospitalization. According to Vatican sources, the two exchanged Easter greetings during their private encounter, marking a diplomatic rapprochement after tension over the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

The meeting coincided with Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square, which Pope Francis—still under doctors’ orders to limit his workload—delegated to Cardinal Angelo Comastri, the retired archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica. However, in a sign of his improving health, the pontiff later appeared on the basilica’s central balcony to deliver the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing.

Though his voice remained weak, Francis addressed the crowd without the nasal cannula he had relied on for oxygen in recent weeks, declaring, “Brothers and sisters, Happy Easter.” He then made a surprise appearance in the popemobile, greeting thousands of pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square—a scene unthinkable just weeks ago during his hospitalization.

Strengthening U.S.-Vatican Ties

Vance, a devout Catholic visiting Rome with his family for Easter, held separate talks on Saturday with senior Vatican officials, including Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Holy See’s foreign minister. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to religious freedom and discussed global conflicts, humanitarian crises, and the plight of migrants and prisoners.

A Vatican statement noted an “exchange of opinions” on these issues, while Vance’s office emphasized shared priorities, including support for persecuted Christians and the Trump administration’s “commitment to restoring world peace.” The discussions followed recent of frictions, including Francis’s public rebuke of U.S. immigration policies in February, when he rejected Vance’s use of theological arguments to defend them.

Despite his fragile health, the pope has steadily resumed public duties, including a visit to a Rome prison last week. In his Easter message, Francis called for ceasefires in global conflicts, particularly Gaza, urging warring parties to “release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people.”

The Vatican has cautioned that Francis’s full recovery may take two months, advising him to avoid large crowds. Yet his Easter appearances—and the high-profile meeting with Vance—signaled a determined return to the global stage.