Mayor Brandon Johnson will meet with Pope Leo XIV in Rome Thursday — and he’s bringing a very Chicago style gift.
According to organizers, the meeting is set to take place about 8:30 a.m. Chicago time. Among those joining Johnson will be a Chicago delegation of 50 people, including Alds. Julie Ramirez, Lamont Robinson and Jason Ervin; City Treasurer Melissa Conyears Ervin; Rabbi Lizzi Hernandez; Rev. Marshall Hatch; Bishop Horace Smith, and Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates.
The meeting mark’s Johnson’s first visit with the Chicago-born pontiff. Johnson was also expected to meet with the Mayor of Rome and tour a new metro station before coming back to Chicago Saturday.
“I am just elated that the pope is from Chicago, right? And so I’m looking forward to this visit at the end of the month,” Johnson said in a previous interview with NBC 5’s Mary Ann Ahern. “And the first thing that I’m going to say to him? I’m going to thank him for his moral clarity, standing up for the most vulnerable, making sure that the people who are the least of these have more than what they need.”
A social post from Johnson before he left for the visit said “I look forward to exploring how we can use our respective authorities to advance justice both in Chicago and around the world.”
Johnson isn’t the first Illinois politician to greet Pope Leo. Previous visits from Illinois include Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias and Gov. J.B. Pritzker, among others. And like the others, Johnson is planning to bring the Pope a gift — but this one is spicy.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is on his way to Rome for his first meeting with Pope Leo XIV. And of course, he’s bringing a Chicago foodie favorite. Mary Ann Ahern reports.
Carefully packed in Johnson’s suitcase, Ahern said, was a jar of spicy giardiniera peppers from iconic Chicago grocer and sandwich shop J.P. Graziano.
“They just came in like any other customer,” owner Jim Graziano told NBC Chicago, of the Mayor’s visit to the shop.
Graziano went on to say that they mayor and his team selected a jar of Partanna Extra Virgin Olive Oil Hot Giardiniera. He also said Johnson offered him the chance to write the Pope a letter.
“I write my sandwich orders down with a red sharpie and a paper bag,” Graziano said. “So grabbed a paper bag, and my red marker, and I said, “Your Holiness, please enjoy a taste of real Chicago.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
