Pope Francis and President Obama met for the first time on Thursday at the Vatican, bringing attention to the relationship moving forward between the U.S. administration and the Catholic Church.
On the agenda for Thursday's meeting, as outlined in a White House statement, was to discuss the pair's "shared commitment to fighting poverty and growing inequality." After shaking hands and taking photos, the two leaders spoke privately for more than 50 minutes, which, as the Catholic News Service notes, is an unusually long time for such a meeting.
Advertisement
As he greeted the pope, President Obama said, "Thank you for receiving me, I'm a great admirer."
See the photos of the landmark meeting below:
