JD Vance takes final gift from Pope Francis before his death

Pope Francis has died following a long illness, the Vatican confirmed on Monday morning. The Pontiff, who had been in declining health for several months, passed away just hours after his final public appearance in St. Peter’s Square during Easter celebrations. Though he was too unwell to attend Easter Sunday Mass, he made a brief appearance at the Vatican on Monday – and held one final, symbolic meeting.

Earlier in the day, around 11:30 a.m., Pope Francis met privately with U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, in what would become his final official engagement. The two spoke briefly, Vatican sources said, about Francis’s vocal criticism of former President Donald Trump’s restrictive immigration policies, which Vance has publicly supported.

What Pope Francis gave J.D. Vance

Vatican media released footage of the meeting, where Vance told the Pope, “I pray for you every day. God bless you,” adding that he was glad to see the Holy Father looking “in better health.”

Francis offered a quiet smile – and then presented Vance with a parting gift: rosary beads and a tie bearing the Vatican’s crest. But his final gesture struck a more playful note.

The Pope gave Vance three Kinder chocolate eggs – one for each of the Vice President’s young children. The moment, warm and deeply personal, would become the last gift ever given by Francis.

A pontificate defined by compassion ends with a symbol of tenderness

Pope Francis died early Monday morning, the Holy See confirmed, surrounded by close aides and members of the papal household. His final weeks were marked by visible fatigue and respiratory issues, though he had continued to receive limited visitors.

His death brings to a close a papacy defined by humility, reform, and moral clarity, particularly in his outspoken advocacy for migrants and the marginalized. That his final official act involved a political figure from the United States – and ended with chocolate for children – felt symbolic of his tenure: always human, always focused on the small, meaningful things.

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