Pope Leo XIV receives Patti Smith at Vatican

Pope Leo XIV received American singer, poet, and artist Patti Smith in a private audience at the Vatican on Friday, July 31.

The meeting lasted about 40 minutes at the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, according to Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro, undersecretary of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education, who shared details of the encounter on Instagram.

Smith wore a Tau cross, a symbol closely associated with the Franciscan order, during the audience.

The meeting also had a personal connection: Both the pontiff and the artist were born in Chicago, a detail highlighted by the Vatican when it reported on the encounter.

Known as the “godmother of punk,” the 79-year-old Smith has been a prominent figure in music, poetry, and the visual arts for five decades.

Her debut album, “Horses,” released in 1975, helped transform New York’s music scene by combining rock and poetry. Her best-known songs include “Because the Night,” which she co-wrote with Bruce Springsteen.

The audience took place amid the Holy See’s continuing dialogue with the cultural world.

On May 8, the first anniversary of Leo XIV’s election, Smith inaugurated the Holy See Pavilion at the 61st International…