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Photos: Governor, Pope meet at the Vatican Wednesday

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VATICAN CITY – The Vatican released pictures of Governor John Bel Edwards interacting with Pope Francis Wednesday.

Photos published by the Vatican indicate the meeting happened on January 18th. It's not clear at what time the meeting happened – the Vatican is about 7 hours ahead of local Baton Rouge time – but, on the Vatican's website, it shows the pope was available for a general audience meeting with a group at 10:00. The pictures with the governor are shared under a “General Audience” file on the site, too.

The general audience – a time when pilgrims and visitors get to listen to the pope and receive his apostolic blessing – was held at the Paul VI Audience Hall next to Saint Peter's Basilica.

The governor's trip was announced late last week. He and other state lawmakers and officials are visiting Italy for a forum about human trafficking. The governor and his wife were scheduled to meet with the pope on their trip, the governor’s office said last week.

There are about thirty pictures of the governor and his wife with the pope. It appears, they pause in prayer, have a conversation and the pope has his hands on a plaque the governor is holding. Toward the end of the series of pictures, a small box is exchanged.

The governor's office said the plaque will hang in the Metanoia Manor – a shelter being built in Louisiana by the Hospitaller Sisters of Mercy for juvenile victims of human trafficking.  Vatican Radio discussed the mission HERE.

The Edwards family funded the trip themselves.

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Follow the publisher of this post on Twitter: @treyschmaltz

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