Pope celebrates giant Paris mass in landmark visit

Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd after celebrating a solemn outdoor mass at Place de la Concorde, central Paris, on September 26, 2026. Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA /AFP via Getty Images

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Pope Leo XIV celebrated an open-air mass in front of hundreds of thousands of faithful in Paris on Saturday after riding in the popemobile along the iconic Champs Elysees to the cheers of huge crowds clutching French and Vatican flags.

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The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics is on a four-day trip to France, a secular country with deep Catholic roots, on the first official papal visit to France in nearly two decades.

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In the highlight of the visit’s second day, the 71-year-old pope led believers in a mass at Place de la Concorde, where a giant white canopy had been erected to serve as a makeshift altar. Dozens of screens were installed to allow worshippers to follow the hour-and-a-half-long service.

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The trip stirred visible enthusiasm and spiritual fervour among the faithful. The pope’s prayers were accompanied by choir and organ music as the sun broke through the grey skies.
“It is truly good and pleasant when brothers and sisters come together and glorify the greatness of God,” said Pope Leo, dressed in white liturgical vestments.

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Over a stretch of more than two kilometres, some 700,000 people had gathered all the way beyond the Arc de Triomphe, the Vatican said. The city centre was sealed off for the service, with helicopters circling overhead and snipers positioned on rooftops.

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Some people sitting on the pavement hugged their knees and dropped their heads in concentration as they listened to the pope’s voice echo across the Champs Elysees.

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Parents arrived with pushchairs and held children on their shoulders as crowds hoped to catch a glimpse of the pontiff.

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Important moment

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Jeanne de Montagnac, 29, came with her husband and two-year-old girl, who was perched on his shoulders with a telephone number scribbled in pen on her arm.

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“We’re happy that, even if she won’t remember it, we’re sharing this with her,” she said, a small golden cross dangling over her off-white jumper.

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“It’s an important moment for us to be surrounded by other people who also have faith.”

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The first US pontiff was visiting France seven months before voters choose a successor to centrist President Emmanuel Macron, with the anti-immigration far right eyeing its best opportunity yet to capture the presidency.

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A number of presidential hopefuls were present, including far-right leader Marine Le Pen and centrist Edouard Philippe.

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President Emmanuel Macron did not attend the mass and was represented by his wife Brigitte.

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“We’re incredibly lucky,” Suzanne Grange, 62, said ahead of the service.

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“We were already lucky enough to see Pope John Paul II in Paris back in 1980,” added her husband Pascal, 65.

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Dignity and peace

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Earlier in the day, the pope met migrants as he visited Maison Bakhita, an association supporting refugees. Leo said it was “possible to encounter one another and to live together in dignity and peace.”