Pope Francis meets with Argentine vice president Victoria Villarruel

Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct 15, 2024 / 15:32 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis on Monday received the vice president of Argentina, Victoria Villarruel, in a meeting in which they discussed the situation in the country and exchanged gifts.

The meeting, which lasted about an hour, took place in the library of the Apostolic Palace in an atmosphere of “great affection,” according to the official statement.

Villarruel, who is also the president of the Senate, shared a video on X that showed the moment the pope greeted her with a cordial “Nice to see you.” With his usual sense of humor, he responded to the question “How are you?” by saying: “Very well, still alive. Are you surviving?” Villarruel replied: “I’m so happy to see you standing,” alluding to the pope’s recent public appearances in a wheelchair.

During the conversation, which covered various topics, the pontiff showed interest in the situation in Argentina and thanked her for the visit, to which Villarruel responded: “Thank you, Holy Father, for receiving me.”

The vice president gave the pope a statuette of a horse with its foal and a Spanish sweet. Francis, for his part, gave her a blessed rosary, a book about the historic blessing given in March 2020 with the phrase “No one is saved alone,” and a message of peace signed especially for her.

As she said goodbye, Villarruel said: “I pray for you, but you pray for me, okay?”

What is Victoria Villarruel’s connection to the Catholic Church?

Victoria Villarruel is a practicing Catholic who has participated in pilgrimages to the national shrine of Our Lady of Luján and has shared greetings on social media during Easter.

Last November, Argentine priest Javier Olivera Ravasi told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, that he personally met Villarruel, who was the godmother of a person baptized in his chapel.

“She has a strong and determined personality; she’s from a military family; she’s Catholic, Roman apostolic and practicing,” related the priest, who also mentioned that Villarruel attends the Traditional Latin Mass.

Villarruel has spoken out against abortion, saying she defends “the right to life because it begins at conception,” not for religious reasons, but for “pure biology,” according to El País.

In 2018, she attended a Mass for Life in Luján and has expressed her intention to repeal the country’s abortion law, although she noted that the priority at the moment is the economic crisis.

In December, after taking office, Villarruel met with the bishop of the military diocese of Argentina, Santiago Olivera, who gave her an image of the Argentine saint Father Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero, wishing her his protection in her administration.

Later, she also met with the archbishop of Buenos Aires, Jorge García Cuerva, and expressed her desire to visit the shrine of the Virgin of Luján to give thanks and pray for the country.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.