After Spain, the Pope is set to win over secular France

Rome. In a week’s time, Leo XIV will set foot in France for what promises to be one of the most significant journeys of the early part of his pontificate. A secularised country where laïcité is held up as a dogmatic truth, yet at the same time one that is experiencing a Christian religious revival, as evidenced by the steadily rising number of adult baptisms. Over four days, the Pope will visit Paris, Lourdes and Metz. He will celebrate Mass at the Place de la Concorde, pray with young people at the Saint-Denis Stadium, recite the Rosary at the Grotto of Massabielle and take part in the evocative torchlit procession at the site where the Immaculate Conception appeared to Bernadette Soubirous. He will visit UNESCO and, finally, the city of Robert Schuman. It is precisely this last engagement – which came as a surprise until the itinerary was published – that is one of the most eagerly anticipated. For days now, the French press has been highlighting the parallels with what John Paul II did in 1988, when he travelled to Metz to commemorate the tribulations of that region (Alsace-Lorraine), which had been contested for centuries and was the scene of some of the bloodiest conflicts. Yet, as Wojtyla emphasised, it was there that the roots of future European integration were also planted. 

John Paul II spoke of freedom at a time when the Iron Curtain was still in place, albeit rusty. Leo XIV will highlight the importance of Europe and its role in the world, which seems particularly relevant and interesting (especially given how this will be articulated in the Pope’s words) at a time when the Union is under threat from Putin’s drones and Trump’s tariffs. He will also speak of Christian roots, a subject that has become increasingly taboo since, a quarter of a century ago, the Catholic Valéry Giscard d’Estaing rejected John Paul II’s plea to mention those origins in the preamble to the EU’s Constitutional Charter – a document which, in any case, never saw the light of day? Last week, at the Collège des Bernardins – the venue for one of Benedict XVI’s most significant speeches on the Christian soul of the Old Continent – Cardinal Reinhard Marx strongly emphasised the Christian roots of European integration. These roots are “undeniable”, he said, adding that a democratic Europe is inconceivable without the Christian principles of charity and mercy. Emmanuel Macron invited the leaders of the European Union to Metz, despite some misgivings from the Vatican: the President’s enthusiasm – which included his desire to award the Pope the Legion of Honour, organise a gala dinner at the Élysée Palace and an unsolicited escort to Notre-Dame – was curbed by a polite but firm explanation that this was an apostolic journey and not a state visit. The Élysée Palace denied any friction, stating that theirs were merely ‘proposals’ rejected by Rome; in short, not everything went according to Paris’s plans. However, as the director of the Vatican Press Office said yesterday, there is also a willingness to hold some bilateral meetings, although it is not yet clear who will attend and who will not. The Vatican delegation is large, though marked by the absence of the Secretary of State: Cardinal Pietro Parolin will, in fact, be in New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

In any case, both Cardinal Aveline and Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo, Bishop of Ajaccio, are seeking to move beyond the problems and tensions: “The state and the Church are not adolescents. They have the capacity to talk to one another. The Church is not sectarian. Emmanuel Macron is welcome to attend Mass at the Place de la Concorde. It is a celebration with Holy Communion; we certainly won’t be preaching separation,” said Bustillo. Rather than focusing on the controversies, attention is being directed towards the extraordinary figures regarding the announced attendance at major events. Seventy thousand attended the Vigil with young people, with tickets selling out in fifteen minutes. Six hundred and sixty thousand attended the Eucharistic celebration in central Paris – despite some secularist controversy from those who would not have wanted to see the Pope and his ‘followers’ there – so much so that Avenue de la Grande Armée was added to the original perimeter. According to Cardinal Aveline, this is precisely what interests the Pope most: understanding how it is possible that, despite the dominance of secularisation, there is still an enthusiastic and faithful congregation. Far more vibrant than elsewhere, where, amidst sighs and yawns, people continue to talk about Christianity and describe themselves as a ‘Catholic country’ simply because the Angelus is broadcast on television from St Peter’s Square on Sunday mornings.