Translated by Kate Stevenson
Pope Leo XIV arrived in France for his fifth international trip. President Macron welcomed him at the foot of the papal plane. It was the start of his journey through one of the world’s most secular countries.
From there, the pope headed to the Élysée Palace. His private meeting with Macron was limited to this moment. The French president had wanted more: a banquet, or to personally show him Notre Dame. But the Holy See turned down both requests, so their face-to-face meeting was reduced to this.
If there is one key political moment on a papal trip, it is the address to government officials, civil society and the diplomatic corps. Popes use this moment to lay out the Vatican’s position on sensitive issues.
For example, in a country where the Church and government are separate, Christians faced repression in the early 20th century. More than 120 years later, the pope reiterated that Catholics should not be pushed to the margins of society simply because of their faith.
However, even in a country where secularization is growing, France is also seeing an unusual phenomenon: thousands of conversions each year. Last Easter, more than 20,000 adults and young people were baptized.
LEO XIV
The Christian who takes part in public life and acts according to the light of a conscience enlightened by faith cannot be considered a proselytizer or a threat to the unity of the nation. Indeed, “authentic secularism does not exclude the religious dimension, but, on the contrary, knows how to treasure it as an educational resource.”
In fact, Leo stressed the importance of cooperation, especially for the good of society.
LEO XIV
True secularism does not mean excluding religion from public life or education. It means working so that the state and religious institutions can engage in dialogue and join forces in the service of truth, goodness and beauty, so that the world may have life.
That final phrase is the motto of the trip which contrasts the current views of the French state. In 2024, the country became the first in the world to put abortion rights in its Constitution. Then, in July, it approved an assisted-dying law, both under Macron’s government.
In his speech, the pope said that people sometimes believe science has the answer to every problem and every form of suffering. For Pope Leo, the concern lies in the lack of conscience when technology is used.
LEO XIV
I sometimes observe with concern certain trends in today’s societies that risk turning science and technology into profit-driven enterprises that promote genetic manipulation, surrogacy, the buying of organs, or the provision of a programmed death.
This was the pope’s first public appearance in France. He made it in Paris, the first stop of his trip.
Ahead of him was an afternoon packed with events, including a visit to UNESCO and to Notre Dame Cathedral, restored after the 2019 fire.
