President Trump will attend Pope Francis‘ funeral, he wrote in a Truth Social post on Monday.
Why it matters: Trump’s first international trip of his second term will be to the memorial service, where officials from across the world will gather in honor of the late pontiff.
- “Melania and I will be going to the funeral of Pope Francis, in Rome,” he wrote on Truth Social. “We look forward to being there!”
State of play: Francis died on Easter Monday at 88 years old.
- His funeral and interment must take place four to six days after his death. The service traditionally takes place in St. Peter’s Square, but no official information has been released.
- Francis wrote a message to Trump on his inauguration, saying he hoped that “the American people will prosper and always strive to build a more just society, where there is no room for hatred, discrimination or exclusion.”
Yes, but: Francis also criticized the Trump administration for its mass deportation policies in a February letter to U.S. bishops.
- “The act of deporting people who in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, exploitation, persecution or serious deterioration of the environment, damages the dignity of many men and women, and of entire families, and places them in a state of particular vulnerability and defenselessness,” he wrote.
Zoom in: Vance met with Francis on Easter Sunday, one of the pope’s final engagements before his death.
- Francis previously took issue with Vance using the Catholic theological concept of “ordo amoris” — often translated as “order of love” or “order of charity” — to defend the administration’s immigration policies.
- Vance called the concept “basic common sense,” adding that moral duties to a child or family member outweigh those to “a stranger who lives thousands of miles away.”
“Christian love is not a concentric expansion of interests that little by little extend to other persons and groups,” Francis wrote in his letter.
- “The true ordo amoris that must be promoted is that which we discover by meditating … on the love that builds a fraternity open to all, without exception,” he added.
Catch up quick: Trump on Monday mourned the pope in a brief statement and ordered flags be flown at half-staff in Francis’ honor.
- “May God bless him and all who loved him!” he wrote.
Flashback: Trump met with Pope Francis and Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin in Vatican City in May 2017.
Go deeper: What to know about Pope Francis’ funeral
