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His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI received in audience President George Bush, June 13, 2008
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13 June 2008
Statement on the audience of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI with President George Bush, June 13, 2008
This morning His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI received in audience President George Bush. Following a special protocol, the Holy Father greeted President Bush – accompanied by his wife Laura and by Ambassador Mary Ann Glendon – at the entrance to the Tower of St. John located in the Vatican Gardens. At the end of their private meeting there, the Holy Father and the President continued their conversation as they strolled together through the Vatican Gardens to the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes.
U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Mary Ann Glendon said, “as we saw on the White House lawn in April, we see again today a living image of what the Pope refers to as ‘healthy secularism.’” Pope Benedict has frequently expressed his admiration for the U.S. as an example of a secular state that welcomes the expression of religiously grounded moral viewpoints in the public square.
It was the third meeting between Pope Benedict XVI and President George Bush in just over one year. The Holy See had announced that the exceptional setting and arrangements for this encounter were in reciprocation for the special courtesies extended to the Pope on his recent visit to the White House.
Ambassador Glendon noted that “from the unprecedented nature of this visit, there is no doubt that these two men have developed a deep personal friendship, in addition to and apart from their common views on so many of the great issues of the day.”
The President and Mrs. Bush are traveling in Europe (June 9 – 16, 2008) to strengthen the trans-Atlantic partnership and to celebrate the enduring friendship between nations based on shared democratic values.
Contact:
Amy Elizabeth Roth
Media and Program Advisor
U.S. Embassy to the Holy See
(39) 06/4674-3433
www.vatican.usembassy.gov
