On Aug. 1, Bishop Kevin Vann reunited with his former classmate and our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, during a papal audience in Rome!
Bishop Vann visited the Vatican with Most Reverend José H. Gomez, Archbishop of Los Angeles.
Photos by Simone Risoluti/Vatican Media
Bishop Vann, accompanied by Fr. David Moreno, the Bishop of Orange’s Priest Secretary and Master of Ceremonies, presented Pope Leo with a special gift box, prepared by Hispanic young people from Garden Grove.
The box contained:
- An image of Christ Cathedral
- A crystal figurine of the cathedral
- A commemorative book about the cathedral campus
- A document about the Diocese of Orange’s efforts to support our migrant brothers and sisters
It also contained a class photo featuring Bishop Vann and Pope Leo (formerly known as Fr. Robert Prevost) when the two studied canon law together in 1982 at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, also known as the Angelicum.