Leo’s visit across France offers personal glimpse of the pope; calls to root out abuse

Pope Leo XIV recently concluded a four-day official visit to France, making it the first papal trip to the country in nearly two decades. The pontiff drew massive crowds, including an estimated 700,000 to 800,000 people for an open-air Mass in Paris at the Place de la Concorde, and received a rapturous welcome during his journey along the Champs-Élysées in his popemobile. He also visited Lourdes, a significant Catholic pilgrimage site, where he celebrated Mass and blessed the faithful. The visit provided a personal glimpse of the Pope, who also met with French President Emmanuel Macron and encouraged French Catholics to uphold their faith in an increasingly secular society.

A central focus of Pope Leo XIV's visit was his strong condemnation of the "scourge" of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, urging French bishops to maintain the "greatest vigilance" in eradicating it. During a private meeting with bishops in Lourdes, he acknowledged their efforts in confronting the "painful scourge of abuse of minors" and stressed the importance of persevering in these efforts. The Pope later met privately with seven adult survivors of clerical sex abuse, some of whom described his embrace as "extraordinary" and felt his commitment to preventing future harm.

Pope Leo XIV reiterated his commitment to church reform in the wake of the global abuse scandal, following a 2021 inquiry that found approximately 330,000 children were abused by clergy or lay members of the Church in France over 70 years. He called on the Church to heal "deep wounds" and "painful errors," expressing hope for collaborative efforts to address the issue. The pontiff also used his platform in Lourdes to reject assisted dying, emphasizing the need to "reject the temptation to cause death under the guise of false compassion".