Pope Leo Draws 800,000 in France as Baptisms Jump 28%, Stirring Revival Debate
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Sep 28
Pope Leo Draws 800,000 in France as Baptisms Jump 28%, Stirring Revival Debate
3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Sep 28
Summary
800,000 people lined Paris streets and 150,000 attended Mass in Lourdes during Pope Leo’s France visit, turning one of Europe’s most secular countries into a brief display of mass Catholic fervor.
21,386 adult and adolescent baptisms were recorded at Easter, including 13,234 adults—up 28% from a year earlier and more than triple a decade ago—giving fresh weight to talk of renewed interest in the church.
80,000 young people joined a prayer vigil at Stade de France, and Leo used the trip to urge youth not to fear the future and to engage for peace while publicly meeting some newly baptized Catholics.
51% of French people aged 18 to 59 say they have no religion and only 29% identify as Catholic, while non-Catholic Christians and Islam have both gained share over the past decade.
France’s recent abortion-rights amendment and assisted-dying law underscore how far public policy has moved from church teaching, leaving open whether the crowds signal lasting religious change.