The unexpected success of the campaign funding the Pope’s September trip is reaching well beyond the Church’s usual donors — a ‘stirring,’ its organizer says, that says something about France’s current state of mind when it comes to the faith.
France is experiencing a wave of enthusiasm ahead of Pope Leo XIV’s Sept. 25-28 visit that has no real precedent in living memory. It is the first official papal journey to the country since 2008 and the first to unfold on this scale — from stops at major sites in and around Paris to the town of Lourdes.
Tickets for the Sept. 25 youth vigil at the Stade de France, the country’s national stadium sold out in under an hour. More than 400,000 people have already registered for the Sept. 26 Mass at Paris’ Place de la Concorde. And as many as 500,000 people are expected to gather along the Champs-Élysées for a chance to catch a glimpse of Pope Leo. Meanwhile, the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes had to close registration a full month early after reaching its cap of 150,000 participants. Hotels in the towns along the Pope’s route have been fully booked for
