Mayor Johnson’s – Mayor Brandon Johnson calls his meeting with Pope Leo XIV “comforting,” but people outside Holy Name Cathedral on Friday split over what the visit really accomplishes. Some praised the conversation and the chance for the pope to return in 2027, while others qu
For many people who gathered Friday afternoon outside Holy Name Cathedral, the Vatican didn’t feel distant at all—it was right there in the questions the visit left behind.
Mayor Brandon Johnson. who met Pope Leo XIV during a trip to the Vatican on Thursday. described the encounter as “comforting.” During the meeting. Johnson spoke with the pontiff about the U.S.’s history of slavery and humanitarian issues connected to U.S. immigration, Gaza, Cuba and Haiti. Johnson also gifted the pope a key to the city and invited Leo to come to Chicago in 2027 to celebrate Mass at Grant Park. saying the Holy Father seemed “blessed by [their] presence.”.
Still, not everyone back home viewed the trip through the same lens. The Sun-Times spoke to roughly half a dozen community members, most of them Catholics, outside the cathedral on Friday, and they landed on sharply different conclusions about the meaning of Johnson’s Vatican stop.
Nick Goutos, 67, said he was troubled by where the money for the trip came from. “Who’s paying for it?” he asked. “I believe his visit there will not make an iota [of] difference in any ounce of politics anywhere in this world.”
Johnson’s trip. according to the mayor’s office spokesperson Griffin Krueger. was funded by World Business Chicago. an agency described as being made up of about 70% corporate donations and 30% public funding. Krueger said the trip was not funded with taxpayer money. A World Business Chicago spokesperson confirmed that funding for the trip came from “private sector contributions.”.
Goutos also questioned the size of the group traveling with the mayor. With 46 influential members in the Chicago delegation. he said the numbers suggested insiders were moving through the trip with an “entourage.” “With such an ‘entourage. ’ there must have been ‘a lot of close friends and allies. ’” he said. adding that the visit looked less like diplomacy and more like tourism. “This is a giant vacation, wrapping the pope into this visit,” he said.
Among the delegation were Chicago Alders, city officials, and Johnson allies including Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates, who was coming off a stinging defeat after members recently rejected her proposal to increase union dues.
Maria Elena Goutos, 55, said she supported Johnson’s visit but was “very disappointed” to see Gates join him. She questioned the payoff, asking, “Why is she going now?” and then pressing the connection to her day-to-day work: “How is it going to benefit teachers that she went to meet with the pope?”
Even with the criticism swirling around it. the meeting also drew praise from some residents who said it was precisely the kind of conversation leaders should have—even if it doesn’t immediately translate into policy. West Loop resident John Vance, 56, said engaging with people “at their levels” should be expected. “Having conversations, those types of people at their levels, I think it should be required,” he said.
Vance emphasized the slavery discussion, saying the dialogue should address “long-lasting errors of judgment,” pointing to Johnson and Leo’s conversation about slavery in the U.S.
Terry Zelenka, 67, said he enjoyed the spectacle but didn’t expect the meeting to bring significant change to Chicago. “It’s a social visit, and there’s no business to be had with the pope,” he said. “But it was kind of fun. It was nice for him to talk about possibly coming here. That would be amazing.”.
His biggest complaint came with a hint of hometown humor: Zelenka, an Edgebrook resident and a White Sox fan, said he found the pope’s reaction to a Cubs gift underwhelming. “It sounded like he didn’t want the Cubs hat. That’s a little disappointing,” Zelenka joked.
Brandon Johnson Pope Leo XIV Holy Name Cathedral Vatican Chicago politics World Business Chicago Grant Park 2027 Mass slavery discussion Gaza immigration Cuba Haiti Stacy Davis Gates Chicago Teachers Union Alders Holy Father