PARIS — PARIS (AP) — Pope Leo XIV’s upcoming trip to France, the first official papal state visit in 18 years, is projected to draw over one million attendees, the French Bishops’ Conference said.
Beginning September 25, the four‑day itinerary features popemobile processions, an outdoor Mass in central Paris, and a visit to Lourdes, a premier Catholic pilgrimage destination.
Cardinal Jean‑Marc Aveline, head of the bishops’ conference, said the visit is “important for France and carries a message for the whole world,” speaking on Tuesday.
The trip starts in Paris with a meeting between Pope Leo XIV and President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace, followed by an address at UNESCO headquarters.
He will then ride the popemobile along a 2.5‑kilometre (1.6‑mile) route through central Paris while church bells chime; organizers anticipate up to 150,000 spectators lining the route.
Later he will preside over vespers at Notre‑Dame Cathedral and conclude the day with a prayer vigil for youths at France’s national stadium.
The next day, an open‑air Mass will be held at Place de la Concorde, with at least 500,000 people expected along the Champs‑Élysées and near the Arc de Triomphe, a stretch the pope will traverse in the popemobile. The ceremony will be broadcast on 42 large screens lining the avenue.
That afternoon he will visit the Maison Bakhita migrant support centre, then meet with newly baptised Catholics.
He will then travel to Lourdes, in the foothills of the Pyrenees in southwestern France, where he will meet seven survivors of clerical sexual abuse, both minors and adults.
Pierre‑Antoine Bozo, spokesperson for the bishops’ conference, remarked, “The Church, like society at large, has come to recognize the grave reality of sexual abuse and is seeking to offer survivors the support they need to overcome their trauma.”
In Lourdes, the pope will end his visit by joining the sanctuary’s traditional rosary and torchlight procession.
Afterwards he will travel to Metz, close to the borders with Luxembourg, Belgium and Germany, a stop the bishops’ conference says adds a European and international scope to the trip.
He is slated to give a speech on Europe’s heritage, peace and unity at a conference centre named for Robert Schuman, a Catholic statesman considered a founding father of European integration who was declared venerable in 2021.
A popemobile procession will wind through Metz to its Gothic cathedral, nicknamed “the Good Lord’s Lantern,” which boasts one of Europe’s largest stained‑glass expanses, flooding the interior with coloured light.
Sylvain Guillebaud, deputy secretary‑general of the bishops’ conference, estimated the visit will cost the Catholic Church about 27 million euros (≈ $31 million). A fundraising drive launched early this summer has so far gathered 5.5 million euros (≈ $6.4 million).
The French government will supplement the effort by deploying security personnel and public services to facilitate a smooth experience for visitors.
This will be Pope Leo XIV’s fourth overseas trip this year, following a day visit to Monaco in March, a tour of four African countries in April, and a journey to Spain and the Canary Islands in June.
The Vatican also announced that in November the pope will embark on his first Latin American pilgrimage, visiting Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, where he ministered for over three decades.