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Young people in France are gearing up for the Pope’s visit next month
In less than a month, Pope Leo XIV’s visit to France will begin — the first papal visit to the country in 18 years. Young people, in particular, are eagerly looking forward to the encounter and will be among those accompanying the Pope during his visit.
By Dorota Abdelmoula-Viet
Although Pope Francis visited French territories three times — in 2014, when he addressed the European Parliament in Strasbourg; in 2023, when he travelled to Marseille for the Mediterranean Meetings; and in 2024, when he visited Corsica for a congress on popular piety — Pope Leo XIV’s visit of will be the first papal apostolic journey to France in 18 years.
The young people who met Pope Benedict XVI at Notre-Dame Cathedral in 2008 are now parents themselves, with children who are eagerly awaiting the Pope’s visit — the first papal encounter of their lives and the first “in their adult life” for their parents.
Popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II During Their Visits to France
80,000 places reserved in the blink of an eye
The level of interest among young people in Pope Leo’s visit is evident from the fact that all the available spots completely filled up — around 80,000 — at the Stade de France near Paris in just one hour. On 25 September, the stadium will host a vigil with the Holy Father, marking the first religious gathering to take place at France’s largest sports venue.
Although the detailed programme for the gathering has not yet been announced, reports appearing in the media suggest that growing numbers of young people in France are taking an interest in Christianity.
Their role models are often witnesses to faith themselves. Among the young people who will perform for the Pope will be Monroe, a 17-year-old singer who openly speaks about her relationship with God. She represented France at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest and, in her daily life, travels around the country performing religious songs in French cathedrals.
An Augustinian “city” preparing to meet an Augustinian Pope
One of the groups preparing most actively for the meeting with the Pope is La Cité Celeste, a network bringing together young people from disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the Paris Region.
Its name, meaning “Heavenly City”, is naturally associated with the biblical New Jerusalem and takes on a new significance during the pontificate of a Pope whose spiritual mentor, St Augustine, also wrote about the heavenly polis.
Some of these young people — including some who have not yet been baptised — took part in last year’s Youth Jubilee in Rome. They asked numerous questions about faith, and that experience in Rome motivated them to come out to meet the Pope in France as well.
Among the organisers of the vigil at the Stade de France is Fr Alexis Germon, a co-founder of La Cité Celeste and a member of the Community of Saint Martin. In an interview with the weekly Famille Chrétienne, he explained that the vigil will feature the stories of French saints, inviting young people to pursue holiness personally, even if they embraced the faith and received baptism only as adults.
Neophytes: Hope for the Church
Pope Leo will also address young people when he meets with neophytes and catechumens at the campus of the Catholic Institute of Paris. Their growing numbers in recent years have both surprised and delighted the French Church. During this year’s Easter Vigil alone, more than 21,300 people were baptised.
This will be the second time the Pope has addressed this group. Last year, it was the newly baptised and catechumens from France whom Pope Leo received at a private audience in the Vatican.
“Following the Lord, you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world,” the Pope told them at the time. “The Church needs your beautiful witness of faith in order to grow and to remain close to every person in need.”
Today, they are helping to organise the volunteer effort supporting the Pope’s visit to France. They are proud that, although they are “those baptised at the eleventh hour” — echoing Jesus’ parable of the workers hired at the end of the day — they can take part in an event of such importance for the whole Church.
10,000 students
Although the vigil at the Stade de France is intended for “older young people”, middle- and high-school students are also preparing for their opportunity to meet the Pope.
On the morning of 26 September, before setting out for the Pope’s Mass on the Champs-Élysées and at Place de la Concorde, they will take part in a prayer gathering modelled on the one organised for them each spring.
Registration will not open until September, but organisers are already expecting at least 10,000 participants.
“Young people really want to come together to celebrate the Pope’s arrival,” says Fr Jean-Michel Dupont, who is responsible for organising the gathering for teenagers.
Pope Leo’s visit to France will take place from 25 to 28 September. Its theme is “So that the world may have life,” referring to Jesus’ Eucharistic Discourse in Chapter 6 of the Gospel according to St John, particularly John 6:51.
The Pope will visit Paris, Lourdes and Metz in succession.
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