Huge crowds welcome Pope Leo XIV for open-air Mass in Paris
Pope Leo XIV led a massive open-air Mass in central Paris attended by more than half a million people. During his visit he also met with migrants and warned about the dangers of artificial intelligence.
Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in central Paris on Saturday to welcome Pope Leo XIV, who led a large open-air Mass in the French capital. The pontiff travelled down the Champs-Élysées in his popemobile, passing beneath the Arc de Triomphe as crowds chanted his name. He stopped several times along the route to bless babies.
More than half a million people were expected at the ceremony on Place de la Concorde, where a special altar had been erected. French President Emmanuel Macron, who held an hour-long meeting with the Pope on Friday, did not attend any of the Masses during the visit, in keeping with France's strict separation of church and state. However, his wife Brigitte Macron and Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu were present. Several candidates for next year's presidential election, including Marine Le Pen, Bruno Retailleau, Édouard Philippe and Gabriel Attal, were also expected to attend.
Meeting with migrants
Earlier in the day, the Pope visited the Maison Bakhita centre, which supports refugees, praising the organisation for helping people see "those who are invisible." He said it was possible for people to live together in dignity and peace, and stressed the important role of women in building a civilisation of love.
At the start of his visit to France on Friday, the Pope also warned about the risks posed by artificial intelligence, cautioning against losing humanity amid a world increasingly shaped by machines.
The Church views the large turnout as a sign of growing spirituality in France and elsewhere in Europe. On Sunday, some 150,000 people are expected at a Mass in Lourdes, and on Monday the Pope will travel to Metz to honour Robert Schuman, a founding father of the European Union. Leo XIV, born Robert Prevost in Chicago in 1955, has family ties to France through his grandmother, who was born in Le Havre.
