Subject: Fw: Biden meets Cardinal Parolin, discusses bet, seeks absolution but not $10: pool 4
From: White House Press Office<[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 2016 07:06:22 -0500

From: Harris, Gardiner <[email-masked]>
Sent: Friday, April 29, 2016 13:58
To: Goodman, Meghan K. EOP/OVP
Subject: Biden meets Cardinal Parolin, discusses bet, seeks absolution but not $10: pool 4

After meeting privately with Pope Francis, VPOTUS met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State. The two men shook hands in the Treaty Room and then moved into a second room.

Here is a transcript of Mr. Biden's remarks, courtesy of Michael A. Memoli of the Los Angeles Times:

BIDEN: What an honor to see you again.
(SHAKE)
BIDEN: I don't know whether you know, your photograph is hanging in my office.
PAROLIN: Oh yeah?
BIDEN; Yes, from our meeting.
PAROLIN: You have already met with the Holy Father.
BIDEN: I have met with the Holy Father. And I've met with these guys, too.
(GESTURES TO POOL THEN GRIPS YOUR POOLER)
BIDEN: I had to pay this man $10. He's from the New York Times. We had a bet: which is the faster car, the newer Cadillac or the new Musk car. Which?
POOLER: Tesla.
BIDEN: The Tesla. I bet the Cadillac.
POOLER: He went for the old technology. I went for the new.
PAROLIN: Oh yes?
BIDEN: The Tesla's two tenths of a second faster. But I lost. I paid my $10. (LOUDER TO ENTIRE POOL, ROOM AND PERHAPS CITY) I want the record to show, I paid my $10.
MEMOLI (CATHOLIC REPRESENTATIVE IN POOL): Does that count as a confession, sir?
BIDEN: I'm seeking absolution!

Betting is not a sin but tends to be discouraged by religious authorities. Timothy 6:10 warns against a love of money, and Jesus's run-in with the money-changers suggested a strong aversion.

Still, Biden's bet seems unlikely to generate the same consternation as his support of abortion rights and gay marriage. Cardinal Parolin seemed unconcerned.

Gardiner Harris
White House Correspondent
The New York Times
1627 I St. NW Suite 700
Washington DC 20006
Desk: +1-202-862-0445
Cell: +1-202-394-9024
[email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>

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