Pope Leo XIV meets Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his wife in a private audience in the Vatican.
By Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV met with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the Vatican on Monday, 13 October. The head of state was accompanied, during the private visit, by his wife, First Lady, Janja Lula da Silva.
In a post on X, President Lula da Silva explained that the conversation focused on religion, faith, Brazil, and the challenges currently facing the world. He also congratulated the Pope on his Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te and its message that “we cannot separate faith from love for the poorest”.
An invitation to visit Brazil
The President also wrote that during the meeting he invited Pope Leo to attend COP30, the United Nations’ Conference on Climate Change, which will take place in November in Belém, in the Brazilian Amazon. Pope Leo XIV will not be able to attend, but, President Lula da Silva pointed out, the Vatican will still be represented. The President added that he has nevertheless invited Pope Leo to visit Brazil.
President Lula da Silva is in Rome to participate in the World Food Forum in Rome, organized by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
