{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "bskyPostRef": {
    "cid": "bafyreifwjuwi4candcol36wkzmq3eu4qaudy73hdf42hsbfgkupuakxqsa",
    "uri": "at://did:plc:oznbnvgr7dmvddiyvr7dih52/app.bsky.feed.post/3moh4g6rktft2"
  },
  "coverImage": {
    "$type": "blob",
    "ref": {
      "$link": "bafkreib33bngomdrgvjerrl2z7zkcxn7uxc4qjrtnweotag4gthnr3qdz4"
    },
    "mimeType": "image/jpeg",
    "size": 71778
  },
  "path": "/politics/us/jd-vance-admission-meeting-pope-death",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-16T21:49:52.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "Ministers plead with Donald Trump not to attack Keir Starmer for 'police state' internet clampdown",
    "Donald Trump set to confront Keir Starmer over immigration at G7 summit",
    "Donald Trump confirms US forces eliminated ‘infamous’ cartel kingpin in deadly strikes",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nJD Vance had admitted he felt \"awful\" for meeting Pope Francis just hours before his death.\n\nThe US vice-president was one of the last people to meet with the pontiff before his death in April last year and opened up on the experience in a new book, \"Communion\".\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nPublished today, the book chronicles Mr Vance's spiritual journey and conversion, arriving at a pivotal moment as he weighs whether to run for president in 2028.\n\nDuring a state visit to Rome, a priest approached the vice-president and invited him to meet with the Pope.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nMr Vance recalled being told: \"The Pope would really like to meet with you while you're here. But he will decide in the morning whether he is up to it.\"\n\nVatican representatives and American diplomats \"were clearly worried about whether it would be seen as a snub if the meeting fell through,\" Vance writes in the memoir.\n\nThe vice-president responded by issuing his best wishes to the pontiff, insisting Pope Francis should not feel obligated to receive him.\n\nDespite his reservations, the 10-minute audience proceeded the following morning.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nMr Vance described being \"unusually nervous\" as he prepared to meet the visibly weakened religious leader.\n\nThe vice-president recalled: \"He was more fragile than I realised, and I felt even worse that he had forced himself out of bed early to meet with me.\"\n\nThe encounter remained casual and brief, with Pope Francis presenting Easter gifts to the Vance children while the vice-president assured him of his family's prayers.\n\nAfterwards, Mr Vance confided in his wife Usha: \"It's sad. He's in very bad shape. But he was very kind.\"\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS\n\n\n\n\n  * Ministers plead with Donald Trump not to attack Keir Starmer for 'police state' internet clampdown\n  * Donald Trump set to confront Keir Starmer over immigration at G7 summit\n  * Donald Trump confirms US forces eliminated ‘infamous’ cartel kingpin in deadly strikes\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nPope Francis died aged 88.\n\nHe had repeatedly found himself at odds with Donald Trump over immigration matters, particularly regarding the border wall with Mexico and the administration's deportation policies.\n\nMr Vance argues in his book that media coverage overstated these disagreements, maintaining the late pontiff \"upheld the traditional order\" in numerous respects.\n\nHe wrote: \"Pope Francis's approach on immigration ... had forced difficult conversations.\"\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nMr Vance added: \"Very often, I'd find myself initially annoyed by a comment he had made, but then I'd read more and learn something.\"\n\nThe memoir arrives during a significant period for American Catholicism, with churches reporting increased membership following the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first US-born pontiff.\n\nHe was elected on May 8 last year.\n\nBefore being elected pope, he was appointed Cardinal by Pope Francis in 2023 and served as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, a powerful office responsible for selecting new bishops worldwide.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "JD Vance admits ‘I feel awful’ as he opens up on meeting Pope just hours before his death"
}