WASHINGTON — WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden considering a visit to the Vatican to meet Pope Francis in early January for what would likely be the final international trip of his presidency, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The people familiar with the planning of the possible visit spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the White House deliberations. Both emphasized that the visit has not yet been completed.
Asked about the possible visit to the Vatican, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Thursday that he had “no travel to speak to today.”
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni declined to confirm or deny any visit, noting that Vatican policy is to announce papal audiences with visiting heads of state only a few days before they take place.
Biden, a practicing Roman Catholic, last met privately with Pope Francis earlier this year when he was in Italy for the Group of Seven leaders’ meeting.
He too meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican in 2021, when they had a wide-ranging conversation about climate change, poverty and the coronavirus pandemic. Their warm conversation also touched on the loss of the president’s adult son, Beau, who died of cancer in 2015, and included jokes about aging well.
Biden’s support for abortion rights and same-sex marriage has put him at odds with many U.S. bishops, some of whom have suggested he should be denied communion.
But after the 2021 Vatican meeting, Biden said Francis called him a “good Catholic” who must continue to receive Communion.
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AP writers Nicole Winfield in Rome and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed reporting.