Two Midwestern kids made good crossed paths at the Vatican on Wednesday, as Pope Leo XIV welcomed Bob Dylan for a brief meeting. According to Vatican News, Dylan, dressed in his finest black hoodie, shared “greetings and a few lighthearted remarks” with the pontiff. The two also exchanged gifts, with Dylan offering Pope Leo a copy of his memoir, Chronicles: Volume One, and receiving a rosary in return.
Their meeting came a few months after Pope Leo used the lyrics from Bob Dylan’s unreleased 1963 song “Go Away You Bomb” to issue a warning against global rearmament and the threat of nuclear weapons use.
For Dylan, it was his second encounter with a pope. He previously performed a selection of songs for John Paul II in 1997.
