Pope Leo XIV's Historic 1st Meeting with France's President Macron and his Wife at the Vatican and they Bring a Special Gift!


 Pope Leo XIV Welcomes French President Emmanuel Macron

In a historic first encounter at the Vatican Apostolic Palace, Pope Leo XIV received French President Emmanuel Macron. The meeting, which extended into discussions at the Secretariat of State, centered on global instability and the urgent need for diplomatic resolutions.

The Apostolic Palace Audience

President Macron arrived at the San Damaso Courtyard at approximately 10:00 a.m., accompanied by the First Lady, Brigitte Macron. They were received by Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza, Regent of the Papal Household.

In the Sala del Tronetto, the President and the Pontiff shared a handshake, marking their first personal meeting. While Macron had visited the Vatican three times during the pontificate of Pope Francis, this audience established his inaugural diplomatic connection with Pope Leo XIV. They gifted Pope Leo XIV, several gifts, in particular a special French national basketball team jersey signed by all the players.

In the official French delegation of Sister Miriam An-Nour, director of the Carmel Saint-Joseph school in Lebanon, and Bishop Hugues de Woillemont, director general of the Œuvre d'Orient, who had just returned from a mission to Lebanon this week.

During this visit, the French president gave the pope the French national basketball team jersey signed by the players, a facsimile of the map of Father Jacques Marquette, a 17th-century French missionary in North America, a collection of texts written by the Catholic writer Georges Bernanos during the Second World War, as well as Mathieu Lours' book Rebuilding Notre-Dame de Paris , published after the reopening of the cathedral.

Emmanuel Macron said he was "very happy" about this meeting, assuring on his X account that Leo XIV and he himself shared the same conviction: "action for peace is a duty and a requirement" .

Diplomatic Exchanges at the Secretariat of State

Following the papal audience, President Macron met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, and Monsignor Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations.

According to a statement from the Holy See Press Office:

"During the cordial discussions in the Secretariat of State, reference was made to the good relations existing between the Holy See and France. The discussions then focused on important international issues, with an exchange of views on conflict situations around the world, expressing the hope that peaceful coexistence can be re-established through dialogue and negotiation."

Engagement with the Community of Sant'Egidio

The President’s Roman itinerary began yesterday with a visit to the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere to meet with the Community of Sant'Egidio. Welcomed by founder Andrea Riccardi and President Marco Impagliazzo, Macron was accompanied by a delegation including Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot.

A poignant moment of the visit included a tribute to Floribert Bwana Chui, a young Congolese man beatified in June 2025. Bwana Chui was martyred in 2007 after courageously refusing to allow the distribution of spoiled food in Goma. Sources: Vatican News Italian/Frence https://www.vaticannews.va/fr/pape/news/2026-04/audience-pape-leon-xiv-president-francais-emmanuel-macron.html

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