VATICAN CITY – Monsignor Christopher Washington, a Wilkes-Barre native who was ordained for the Diocese of Scranton in 2006, served as a personal aide and translator for Pope Francis since 2021.

As such, the Scranton Diocesan priest accompanied the Holy Father during his brief meeting with U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance on Easter Sunday, April 20 – the Pontiff’s final official private audience before he passed away hours later on Easter Monday morning.

Pope Francis meets briefly with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, and his translator, in the papal residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, at the Vatican April 20, 2025. The Vatican said the meeting was an opportunity to exchange best wishes for Easter. Pope Francis, formerly Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, died April 21, 2025, at age 88. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Less than a week later, Monsignor Washington greeted U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump when they arrived at the Vatican for the funeral Mass of Pope Francis in Saint Peter’s Square April 26.

Fluent in the foreign languages of Italian, Spanish and French, Monsignor Washington has served as a member of the Diplomatic Corps of the Holy See for the past ten years.

Pope Francis elevated the Scranton Diocesan priest to the rank of Chaplain of His Holness (with the title of Monsignor) in 2019.

He previously was in the Apostolic Nunciature (Embassy of the Holy See) in Bolivia and Lithuania.