Pope encourages Catholics to persevere as central Paris shuts down for Mass

Pope Leo XIV is on a four-day visit to France (Pool Photo via AP)

The Pope has encouraged French Catholics to persevere in their faith “even amid the thorns” of a secular world, rallying the faithful ahead of a huge Mass at the iconic Place de la Concorde that shut down central Paris.

Leo XIV opened his second day in France by meeting with young converts, whose decision to join the Catholic Church has sparked optimism in the French hierarchy even amid an overall downward spiral of the practicing faithful in the once devoutly Catholic but now deeply secular country.

The church’s enduring influence in France has been visible with the throngs filling Paris avenues to see Leo’s motorcade pass by.

On Friday night, some 80,000 young people filled the national stadium north of the French capital for a vigil extravaganza of fireworks and a theatrical retelling of French Catholic history.

Leo has clearly been impressed by their numbers and enthusiasm, especially at the vigil that kept the 71-year-old pope out until nearly 11pm after a packed first day.

“Thank you for your courage! Thank you for your presence,” Leo told the crowd, speaking off the cuff in French. “Thank you for your faith. You are the saints of France!” he said to raucous cheers.

Leo sought to encourage those who have opted in during a meeting on Saturday with a group of newly baptised faithful at the Catholic Institute of Paris.

After hearing from some converts, the American pope said he was surprised by their numbers and grateful for what he said was God’s “unfathomable work” to counter all statistical and sociological analysis.

“We must recognise, welcome and protect the small flame that the Holy Spirit has kindled in the darkness of the night, the tiny seed that strives to grow even amid the thorns,” he said.

The number of adult baptisms in France each year has tripled since 2016, hitting 13,000 this year. The numbers suggest a newfound interest in the church from young people who either left the faith and came back or were never raised in it to begin with.

But statistics and experts caution that the slight uptick in new faithful, which has been recorded also in secular Spain, does not counteract the overall generational trend of children of practicing French Catholics no longer going to Mass or baptising their babies.

In 1980, there were 513,000 baptisms in France; in 2024, a total of 186,000.

While welcoming the slight uptick among new adult converts, Leo warned French bishops not to become overly optimistic, and to work to accompany these new Catholics and integrate them into their church communities.

Later on Saturday, Leo is scheduled to celebrate Mass at the central Place de la Concorde, with crowds expected to fill the adjacent Champs-Élysées, essentially the heart of Paris and a symbol of the secular French republic.

Road closures and other crowd-control measures for the pope shut down central Paris on Saturday and are reminiscent of the security blanket that was thrown over central Paris for the Olympic Games in 2024.

Organisers said they chose the site because it was the only area in central Paris that could accommodate the hundreds of thousands of people expected to attend. More than 600,000 people registered to attend. Last week, organisers extended the crowd site because they predicted more.

“He projects something that could bring peace in the chaos we are living in, reconciliation and joy,” said Solene Rousseau, who came out to see Leo pass by. “Pope Leo can take part in changing this world.”

France is a traditionally Catholic country, but adheres to a strict form of secularism in public life based on a 1905 law separating church and state.