Despite criticism: Vance welcomed the election of Pope Leo XIV, an American by origin

J.D. Vance congratulated the new Pope on his election despite their public dispute

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance congratulated the newly elected Pope Robert Prevost, who took the name Leo XIV, despite the fact that he criticized the actions of the American authorities in his publications.

This is reported by UNN with reference to DailyMail.  

Congratulations to Leo XIV, the first American Pope, on his election! I am confident that millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work in leading the Church. May God bless him!

At the same time, as the publication notes, Vance did not comment on the Pope's posts criticizing President Trump and Vance on immigration issues, which he published. Let us add that Vance converted to Catholicism in 2019.

During an interview in January, he defended President Trump's immigration policy, citing the Christian concept of "ordo amoris" - a justly ordered love.

You love your family, then you love your neighbor, then you love your community, then you love your fellow citizens in your own country, and then you can focus and prioritize the rest of the world

Later, he defended his reasoning on social media. "The idea of ​​having no hierarchy of obligations violates elementary common sense," Vance wrote on social media.

As the publication notes, in early 2025, Prevost published two articles in response to Vance's arguments.

The first article was an authored article by Kate Armas from the progressive Catholic news resource National Catholic Reporter. In it, Armas criticized Vance for using a "medieval concept to defend his vision of immigration."

The imperial vision of love is built on scarcity, but the Kingdom of God is built on abundance. If we ask ourselves: "Who is my neighbor?" - we no longer understand the essence. A better question is: how do I love limitlessly?

The second article was written by Jesuit priest Sam Sawyer of Jesuit Review, who also criticized Vance's position. Sawyer complained that "many Catholics, and quite possibly most Catholics, voted not only for tolerance, but also for ardent support of a view of immigration and immigrants that is strikingly different from what the church teaches."

According to the publication, Sawyer noted that he was "a little surprised by the Pope's decision to intervene" in the debate, but added that his intervention reflects the hope that U.S. Catholics "allow the Gospel to cleanse us and call for conversion regarding our response to immigrants."

Pope Francis also reacted to Vance's statements. In his February letter to the bishops of the United States, without directly naming Vance, Francis explained the concept of "ordo amoris."

The true ordo amoris, which must be promoted, is the one we discover by constantly reflecting on the parable of the "Good Samaritan" (cf. Lk. 10:25-37), that is, reflecting on the love that builds brotherhood, open to all without exception

Let us remind

Despite this, Vance met with Pope Francis in the Vatican on Easter during his visit to Rome. The private meeting lasted only a few minutes. This was the Vice President's first meeting with the Pontiff since 2020. The Pope gave Vance a tie, rosary beads and Easter eggs for the children.