Vice President JD Vance Trolled For Being Among The Last People To See Pope Francis

US Vice President JD Vance has been roasted on X, formerly known as Twitter, for being one of the last people to see the late Pope Francis.

On Monday, the Vatican announced Pope Francis's death, just a day after his final appearance on Easter Sunday.

Vance met briefly with the late Pope and exchanged greetings with him on Sunday.

The US Vice President has been the butt of several netizens' jokes on X after he was pictured with the Pope on Sunday, hours before his death.

One X user reacted to The Associated Press's post about Vance's meeting with the Pope by tweeting, "Not him passing away 4 hours after this. JD Vance is the anti-christ confirmed."

Another X user joked that the Pope died because he couldn't handle Vance's presence. They wrote, "Imagine being so unbearable that the Pope drops dead immediately after meeting you."

A third X user added, "I don't think JD Vance killed the Pope, I think meeting JD Vance probably drained the Pope's will to live. It's subtly different."

Another netizen shared, "The Pope meets with Vance *immediately dies of cringe*."

Another X user shared side-by-side images of Vance's meeting with the Ohio State University's football team and his interaction with the Pope.

Recall that Vance fumbled the football team's national championship trophy while trying to lift it when they visited the White House last Monday.

The X user captioned the photos, "If I was next on JD Vance's schedule, I would be shaking in my boots."

Another X user shared the same sentiments, writing, "JD touched a trophy and it broke. Then, he touched the Pope and he broke. I hope he shakes Donald's hand this week..."

Another person shared, "I too would pass away if I had to say something kind to JD Vance."

Someone added, "Pope Francis survived a double pneumonia but not a five minutes meeting with JD Vance."

The Vatican released a statement on Monday to announce the sad news of Pope Francis's passing.

The statement, made by His Eminence Cardinal Farrell, began, "Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow, I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis."

Farrell continued, "At 7:35 this morning (local time), the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and His Church."

He added, "He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage and universal love, especially in favour of the poorest and most marginalized."

The statement concluded, "With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God."

Following the announcement of Pope Francis's death, several global leaders paid tribute to him.

Vance, a Catholic convert, was among those who did. Taking to X, he mourned the pontiff's death, writing, "I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him."

He recalled their meeting a day before the Pope's death, noting, "I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But I'll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was quite beautiful."

Vance concluded, "May God rest his soul," and shared a link to the homily he referenced.

The pope passed away amid the Catholic Church's Easter celebrations. On Easter Sunday, he made what would be his final public appearance and was seen greeting the crowd from the gallery of St. Peter's Basilica after celebrating Mass.

During this last appearance, Pope Francis delivered a heartfelt message promoting peace and mutual respect. He emphasized the need for tolerance and understanding among people of different beliefs.

An aide read his Easter Sunday message, which included the powerful statement, "There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression."

The pope also spoke about the suffering in Gaza. He described the ongoing violence in the region as a "deplorable humanitarian situation."

Reflecting on global conflicts, he said, "What a great thirst for death, for killing we see in many conflicts raging in different parts of the world."

He added, "I express my closeness to the sufferings... for all the Israeli people and the Palestinian people. Call a ceasefire, release the hostages, and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace."