Fifteen months after his visit to the country, Pope Francis met with the president of Slovakia, Zuzana Čaputová, at the Vatican.
As a gift the Slovak President gave the Pope a very unique depiction on St. Francis.
This painter makes these very simple representations of saints.
She also give him Christmas decorations made in Slovakia, and typical Slovak candies made from people with mental disabilities.
As well as a children's book of Pope Francis' teachings in Slovak.
In return the Pope gave Čaputová a bronze medal of St. Martin giving his cloak to a poor person, and encouraged her to follow his example of caring for the poor.
I like that you do that, and continue to do it, even with the cost.
After their half hour meeting, they left with this warm goodbye.
God bless you. Thank you so much.
And pray for me, which is not always easy.
Yes, of course. All the best.
The two also met privately during the Pope's trip to Slovakia in September 2021. A former environmental lawyer, Čaputová has previously discussed issues related to the environment with Pope Francis, but in their most recent meeting they focused their conversation on the war in Ukraine and the reception of refugees into Slovakia.
JM
