List of meetings between the pope and the president of the United States

This is the list of meetings between the pope and the president of the United States. The first meeting between a pope and an incumbent U.S. president took place in the aftermath of World War I, January 1919, at the Vatican between Benedict XV and Woodrow Wilson. Altogether, there have been 32 meetings between six popes and 14 U.S. presidents over the past century.

Meetings Key Meeting occurred in present-day Vatican CityMeeting occurred in the United StatesMeeting occurred in present-day Italy

No.DateSiteCityCountryPresidentPopeNotes1Apostolic Palace Rome Italy First meeting between the incumbent president of the United States and the reigning pope. Occurred during President Wilson's participation in the Paris Peace Conference, the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to Europe. 2Vatican City 3Vatican City First meeting between a Roman Catholic U.S. president and the head of the Catholic Church.4Waldorf Astoria New YorkNew York CityUnited States 5Vatican CityUnannounced stop at the end of the president's visit to Australia and Asia.6Vatican City 78Vatican City 9White HouseWashington, D.C.United States First visit by a pope to the White House.10Vatican City11Vatican City12Fairbanks International AirportFairbanks, AlaskaUnited StatesPresident Reagan was returning to the United States from a visit to China while Pope John Paul II was making a stopover on his way to South Korea, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Thailand.13Vatican City14Miami International Airport and the Vizcaya Museum and GardensMiami, FloridaUnited States15Vatican City1617Regis University Denver, ColoradoUnited States Both leaders addressed thousands of young students at World Youth Day.18Vatican City19Newark Liberty International Airport Newark, New JerseyUnited States20St. Louis Lambert International Airport St. Louis, MissouriUnited States21Palace of Castel Gandolfo Castel GandolfoItaly22Vatican City23President Bush presented Pope John Paul II with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.2425White House Washington, D.C.United States26Vatican City27Vatican City 28 Vatican CityFrancis29White House Washington, D.C. United States30Vatican CityOccurred during President Trump's visit to Israel, the West Bank, Italy, and Saudi Arabia. The meeting proceeded amicably despite prior public disagreements between the two on environmental policy and Trump's proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall.31Vatican CityMeeting between a Roman Catholic U.S. president and the head of the Catholic Church. Occurred during President Biden's visit to Italy and the United Kingdom.32Borgo EgnaziaFasanoItaly President Biden and Pope Francis participated in the 50th G7 summit and later held a bilateral meeting.

Gallery

Other meetings Future popes meeting the president Eugenio Pacelli (later Pope Pius XII) visited the United States for two weeks in October–November 1936 and met President Franklin D. Roosevelt at Hyde Park, New York on November 5, 1936.

President George W. Bush attended the funeral of Pope John Paul II on April 8, 2005 and briefly met Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, who had celebrated the Requiem Mass. Bush was the first incumbent U.S. president to attend a papal funeral.

Future presidents meeting the pope According to his sister Corinne, future President Theodore Roosevelt, aged 11, met Pope Pius IX in Rome and kissed his hand when the Roosevelt family was travelling in Europe.

In 1902, future U.S. President William Howard Taft, in his capacity as Governor-General of the Philippines, met in the Vatican with Pope Leo XIII to conduct negotiations concerning the purchase of lands owned by Catholic religious orders in the Philippines after the United States gained control of the Catholic-dominated islands at the conclusion of the Spanish-American War. The goal was that the United States acquire these lands then sell them to Filipino farmers to give them a stake in the new government and address resentment against the mostly Spanish priests who held much of the arable land. The Pope promised to study the issue and expressed support for the American pacification program, which was agreed to and implemented by 1904.

While Joe Biden was serving as a U.S. Senator, he met with Pope John Paul II on April 12, 1980 at the Vatican. During Biden's tenure as Vice President of the United States, he met Pope Francis on three occasions. Biden led the U.S. delegation at the papal inauguration of Pope Francis in March 2013; he accompanied the pope during the pontiff's visit to the United States in September 2015; and met him at a Vatican conference on cancer research in April 2016.

Then-Vice President George H. W. Bush met Pope John Paul II on September 19, 1987 in Detroit. The pope was concluding a ten-day visit to the United States.

First ladies meeting the pope Jacqueline Kennedy was the first First Lady of the United States to meet with a pope independent of her husband, the president. On March 11, 1962, she met with Pope John XXIII at the Vatican while en route to India and Pakistan.

Nancy Reagan met Pope John Paul II at the Vatican on May 4, 1985 while President Ronald Reagan was attending the 11th G7 summit in Bonn, West Germany. Mrs. Reagan met the pontiff again on September 16, 1987 in Los Angeles during his ten-day visit to the United States.

Laura Bush and her daughter Barbara Bush met Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on February 9, 2006. The First Lady was en route to the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.

Former presidents meeting the pope After leaving office, former Presidents Martin Van Buren and Millard Fillmore met separately with Pope Pius IX in Rome in 1855. Pius IX also met Franklin Pierce in November 1857. In 1878, Ulysses S. Grant met Pope Leo XIII in the Vatican as part of his post-presidential world tour.DeGregorio, William A. The Complete Book of US Presidents W.W. Norton 1989

In April 1910, Theodore Roosevelt sought an audience with Pope Pius X. The Pope agreed to see him, provided Roosevelt would not call on some Methodist missionaries in Rome. Roosevelt had no intention of meeting the missionaries, but he declined to submit to Pius X's conditions and the interview did not take place. Theodore Roosevelt called the entire papal episode, "An elegant row."Durant, John and Alice Pictorial History of American Presidents A. S. Barnes and Company 1955 p. 216

In July 2023, Bill Clinton visited Pope Francis at Casa di Santa Marta in Vatican City. They had a private meeting to talk about peace.

See also Holy See–United States relations List of international trips made by presidents of the United States List of pastoral trips made by Pope Paul VI List of pastoral trips made by Pope John Paul II List of pastoral trips made by Pope Benedict XVI List of pastoral trips made by Pope Francis List of pastoral trips made by Pope Leo XIV Papal travel Papal visits to the United States

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