Pope calls Biden a ‘good Catholic’ during meeting

Pope calls Biden a ‘good Catholic’ during meeting

US President Joe Biden has said Pope Francis called him a “good Catholic” as they met at the Vatican at the start of a European trip aimed at reasserting US international credentials.

The meeting at the Vatican lasted more than an hour, longer than Mr Biden’s two predecessors were given, and came as the President arrived in Europe ahead of a weekend G20 summit in Rome and UN climate talks in Glasgow.

President Biden, only the second Catholic to hold his office, said Pope Francis had expressed pleasure that “I was a good Catholic” in the talks, which sidestepped the controversial topic of abortion.

The meeting kicks off his Europe trip, where he hopes to push his mantra that “America is back” after the Trump years.

The Vatican meeting was closed to the media but footage released by the Holy See showed a good-humoured gathering full of smiles, with President Biden at points visibly moved, and elsewhere telling the pope “God love ya”.

He called the pontiff “the most significant warrior of peace I have ever met”, as he gave him a presidential coin recalling the regiment in which his son Beau Biden, who died from cancer in 2015, had served.

“I know my son would want me to give this to you,” Mr Biden said.

The president, who is open about his faith and how it gives him strength, has already met Pope Francis three times before but this was their first tete-a-tete since he entered the White House.

Mr Biden will travel to Glasgow for COP26 climate talks after the weekend G20 meeting.

Both he and the pope have been outspoken on the need to tackle global warming, Pope Francis repeated his call for action in a BBC broadcast Friday, and this was a dominant theme of their talks.

“I thanked His Holiness for his advocacy for the world’s poor and those suffering from hunger, conflict, and persecution, and lauded his leadership in fighting the climate crisis and ending the pandemic,” the president tweeted later.

He said the meeting, part of which was with his wife Jill, had been “an honour”.

The Vatican said they discussed climate change, the pandemic and the issue of refugees and migrants, as well as “the protection of human rights, including freedom of religion and conscience”.

Following the meeting, Mr Biden told journalists that the red-button issue of abortion was not discussed.

“We just talked about the fact that he was happy I was a good Catholic,” President Biden said.

He supports the right to choose, while Pope Francis, 84, has slammed terminating pregnancies as “murder”.

The pontiff has nonetheless distanced himself from a push by conservative US bishops to deny communion to politicians supportive of abortion rights, which would include President Biden.

After the meeting, Mr Biden headed for talks with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and French President Emmanuel Macron, before the G20 kicks off tomorrow morning.

Pope says COP26 must give ‘concrete hope’ to future generations

Political leaders must give “concrete hope” to future generations that they are taking the radical steps needed to tackle climate change when they meet at COP26, Pope Francis said in a message released ahead of the summit.

The pontiff called on world leaders attending the event for a “renewed sense of shared responsibility for our world” to spur action.

“It is essential that each of us be committed to this urgent change of direction,” he said on BBC Radio.

“The political decision makers who will meet at COP26 in Glasgow are urgently summoned to provide effective responses to the present ecological crisis and in this way to offer concrete hope to future generations.”

Pope Francis said the summit would be tough, but also represents an opportunity.

“These crises present us with the need to take decisions, radical decisions that are not always easy,” he said.

“At the same time, moments of difficulty like these also present opportunities, opportunities that we must not waste.”

The Vatican is sending a delegation to the summit, but the 84-year-old pope will not be going following surgery earlier this year.

Pope Francis warned against the danger of isolationism and protectionism in dealing with the climate crisis.

“We can confront these crises by retreating into isolationism, protectionism and exploitation. Or we can see in them a real chance for change, a genuine moment of conversion, and not simply in a spiritual sense,” he said.

“This last approach alone can guide us towards a brighter horizon.”

In a draft communique seen by Reuters, leaders of the world’s richest countries will commit this weekend at the G20 gathering to tackling the existential threat of climate change, paving the way for more detailed action at COP26.

The group, which gathers for talks on Saturday and Sunday in Rome, will pledge to take urgent steps to reach the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C, according to the draft.

They will then head to Glasgow, Scotland for the crucial United Nations gathering of almost 200 countries.