Hundreds of thousands expected in Paris for Pope Leo's visit
Pope Leo XIV is visiting Paris for a four-day trip, culminating in a massive open-air Mass expected to draw 600,000 attendees. The visit includes high-level meetings with President Emmanuel Macron to discuss geopolitics and artificial intelligence.
Why it matters
The visit highlights the complex intersection of secular French state policy and the significant influence of the Catholic Church in European public life.
Share Save Add as preferred on Google Hugh Schofield in Paris Watch: Pope Leo XIV arrives in Paris for four-day visit Pope Leo XIV embarks on a four-day visit to France on Friday, with the highpoint being a giant Mass attended by more than half a million people in central Paris.
For Saturday's afternoon celebration, an altar has been built on the Place de la Concorde and a large area around the Champs-Élysées sealed off by police.
Some 600,000 Catholic faithful are expected to cram the avenue up to the Arc de Triomphe and beyond.
Large crowds are also due at other stages in the Pope's itinerary, reflecting an enthusiasm that the Church attributes to growing spiritual thirst among the French and other Europeans.
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