The Pope receives Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister of Italy, in the Vatican

On the morning of this Tuesday, January 10, Pope Francis received in audience at the Vatican the Prime Minister Giorgia Melonifirst woman to hold this political position.

The journalist and politician Meloni arrived at the Vatican at 9:45 am (Rome time) with her daughter Ginevra and her partner Andrea Giambruno.

She was received by Bishop Leonardo Sapienza in the Cortile de San Damaso and by the Italian ambassador to the Holy See, Francesco Di Nitto.

The private audience with the Holy Father began at 10:00 am and lasted just under an hour.

As reported by the Holy See, during the meeting emphasis was placed on good bilateral relations and some issues related to the Italian social situation were mentioned, with special reference to problems related to the fight against poverty, the family, demography and the youth education.

In the course of the conversation, issues of an international nature were also discussed, with special reference to Europe, the conflict in Ukraine and migration.

Pope Francis handed over Giorgia Meloni a bronze work titled “Social Love”which represents a child helping another to get up, with the inscription “I will love, I will help” (Love, help).

He also gave him some volumes of papal documents: this year’s Message for Peace and other texts such as the one on human brotherhood, the station orbis of March 27, 2020, the volume on the Pontifical Audiences and the book “An encyclical on peace in Ukraine”.

For her part, the President of the Council of Italy gave the Pope a copy of “Holy Mass explained to children”, a small book containing “The Song of Creatures” and “The fiorettiof Saint Francis of Assisi. He also presented the Holy Father with an angel from the president’s private collection.

It should be remembered that on January 2 The Prime Minister visited St. Peter’s Basilica to pray before the body of the Pope Emeritus.

In addition, he expressed his condolences to the personal secretary of Benedict XVI, Bishop Georg Gänswein.

In a message posted on her Twitter profile, Giorgia Meloni pointed out that Benedict XVI “was a giant of faith and reason.”

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“He put his life at the service of the universal Church and spoke, and will continue to speak, to the hearts and minds of men with the spiritual, cultural and intellectual depth of his Magisterium,” he said.

The journalist and politician Giorgia Meloni Meloni, 45, has been Prime Minister of Italy since October 22, 2022. During a rally in Rome defined herself as “woman, mother, Italian and Christian”.

His party, “Brothers of Italy”, denounces the “Islamization” of Europe and presents a program that proposes a reform of the European Union, tax cuts and the defense of the homeland and Christian values ​​under the motto “God, homeland and family ”.