Pope Leo focuses on unity amid fractures during historic France visit

Leo's four-day visit began with political overtones as reporters asked about Trump banning media outlets from the White House.PARIS (CN) — On Friday morning in the courtyard of the Élysée Palace, roughly 400 reporters stood under the sun as murmurs traveled through the crowd: “He just left, and how long can it take if the city is shut down … I heard he just got to Place de la Concorde so it should be any minute now,” and finally, “He’s here.”Pope Leo XIV, the leader of roughly 1.4 billion Roman Catholics, arrived in a black BMW before slowly walking down a red carpet to meet French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte. The Orchestra of the Republican Guard sounded drums and horns in the background.The occasion is historic. Even though his predecessors have set foot on French soil in recent years, this is the first official papal visit since 2008. His schedule is packed with events big and small; roughly 600,000 people are expected to attend a public mass Saturday morning, which will stretch from the Place de la Concorde across the Champs-Élysées. On Sunday, Leo will travel to Lourdes to meet with seven survivors of sexual abuse by clergy members.A UNESCO visit, prayer vigil and popemobile parades are also on the agenda.The theme of the four-day visit is “That a world may have life,” which the Vatican said should encourage people to “overcome divisions in order to share peace, reconciliation and fraternity, signs of new life in the world.” And although the pope is not typically engaged in politics, the visit turned political before he stepped off the plane.In the air, a reporter asked about U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent attempt to bar CNN and other news outlets from the White House. Leo replied, “I am very happy that here, you are all welcome," adding that good media coverage is important “all the way around, for everyone.”Pope Leo XIV, left, and French President Emmanuel Macron, attend a joint statement at the Elysee Palace, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Teresa Suarez, Pool)During his speech in French alongside Macron on Friday morning, Leo said a “just [secularism] does not consist of excluding religion from the public space.” In the French context, where secularism is a key pillar of the government and right-wing leaders have controversially advocated banning religious headscarves in public, the message seemed pointed.“This echoed the remarks of President Macron, who himself had just said that secularism was not a way to confine religions to the private sphere,” Charles Mercier, a director of studies in the history of sociology of Catholicism at the École Pratique des Hautes Études, said.“The bishops and the Vatican are opposed to any restriction on religious freedom; not just for Catholics, but for all religions, and the defense of religious freedom is truly a major focus of the policy of the Holy See and the episcopates,” Mercier added.There were roughly 400 reporters covering the arrival of Pope Leo XIV at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Sept. 25, 2026. (Lily Radziemski/Courthouse News)Mercier said Leo likely tries to avoid messaging that carries political undertones,“He has a way of staying at a certain level of generality, positioning himself at the level of principles rather than concrete applications,” he said. “And so he would place himself, I would say, on a metapolitical level rather than a strictly political one, by recalling broad principles linked to a kind of universal rights inspired by human rights — while avoiding getting into issues that are too specific or that strictly fall under political deliberation.”Although Leo’s meeting with sexual assault survivors on Sunday will be behind closed doors, it’s a part of the visit that is being closely watched.When Jean-Pierre Fourny was a child, he suffered abuse by brothers at his school, where he said at least 70 children were abused decades ago. In a shaky voice over the phone, Fourny said he was a survivor, which took a lot of strength “because there are others who couldn’t, who drifted into alcoholism, drugs, divorce … well, total disasters and suicide.”He’s the co-president of Ampaseo, an association for the memory and prevention of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, and has worked closely with members of the clergy and government.In his view, Leo is missing the opportunity to meet with Ampaseo and similar organizations that could help put prevention programs into place. Fourny said leaders have seemed to be at a loss when confronted with victims’ testimonies.“They’re — pardon my language, but they’re just standing there like complete idiots, you know? They don’t know what to do anymore, they tell us, ‘I don’t even know what to say anymore,’” he said. “Even the head of state wouldn’t know what to say; with Macron, there’s no risk of that — he’s never even met with us.”Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads