Overview
- The open‑air Mass on the Champs‑Élysées and Place de la Concorde drew an estimated 800,000 people on Saturday, with the pope riding the popemobile down the avenue before celebrating at a large altar in the square.
- After Paris, Leo traveled to Lourdes where he prayed at the Grotto of Massabielle, celebrated a pilgrimage Mass attended by roughly 150,000 people, and publicly urged the Church to 'heal deep wounds.'
- The pope was due to meet seven French victims of clerical sexual abuse in a private session on Sunday as part of a broader push by Church leaders to confront past scandals reported to have affected hundreds of thousands of people.
- The choice of Place de la Concorde for the Mass drew criticism from secularist groups who cited France’s 1905 separation law, while several high‑profile politicians and presidential hopefuls were seen near the event and President Macron was represented by his wife.
- Leo used the visit to press moral and policy points — warning about risks from artificial intelligence and rejecting recent assisted‑dying legislation — a stance that, together with a rise in adult baptisms, signals renewed public engagement with the Church ahead of next year’s election.