Pope Leo XIV has told the new United States ambassador to the Holy See that he is praying for slain activist Charlie Kirk and his family.
Kirk, a key ally of President Donald Trump, was shot dead on 10 September while speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem.
His wife Erika and their two young children were at the event and witnessed the shooting. It was also captured on video, which went viral online.
Tyler Robinson, 22, was charged on Tuesday with aggravated murder following a 33-hour manhunt.
He could face the death penalty if convicted.
Leo received Ambassador Brian Burch in an audience on Saturday to receive his credentials. The protocol visit marked their first meeting.
“The pope confirmed that he is praying for Charlie Kirk,” spokesman Matteo Bruni said in comments reported byVatican News.
Leo also “expressed concern about political violence and spoke of the need to refrain from rhetoric and exploitation that lead to polarization rather than dialogue,” Bruni said.
Leo had sent a telegram of condolences 27 August after a shooting in a Catholic church in Minneapolis that left two school children dead, but did not send a telegram about the Kirk slaying.
Leo also prayed for the victims of the Minneapolis shooting in a Sunday service at the Vatican.
“We include in our prayers the countless children killed and injured every day around the world,” the pontiff said.
“Let us plead to God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world.”
Burch hosted a welcome diplomatic reception Monday, in which he said it was a “remarkable time to be in Rome” with an American pope for the first time.
He spoke about his papal audience, saying Leo “reminded me he is not an American pope. He is a pope of America for the world,” Burch told the assembled ambassadors, cardinals and guests.
Burch’s Chicago-based organization, CatholicVote, endorsed Trump in the 2024 election and helped lead a successful effort to boost Catholic support for the Republican winner.
On Tuesday, Robinson appeared virtually from jail in an anti-suicide vest before a judge at an initial hearing, with the next court date set for 29 September.
Officials say he was radicalized online and subscribed to a “leftist” ideology, and said the motive for the killing was a hatred of Kirk.
