Pope Leo’s Paris Mass draws up to 800,000, Vatican estimates

Pope Leo XIV celebrated an outdoor Mass at Place de la Concorde in Paris on Saturday, drawing a crowd the Vatican estimated at between 700,000 and 800,000 people. The gathering was the largest event of his four-day visit to France. About 600,000 people had registered in advance, but the reports provide no independent final count and do not reconcile the differing Vatican estimates. Crowds lined the Champs-Élysées as Leo travelled toward the square in an open-top popemobile, greeting people along the route and blessing children, babies and people with disabilities who were brought forward by volunteers. Police closed nearby streets and put security measures in place. Attendees included Catholics, people of other faiths and people who did not identify as religious. In his homily, Leo urged Catholics to seek happiness through faith rather than material possessions and encouraged them not to keep their faith private. The Mass capped a day that included a meeting with newly baptized Catholics at the Catholic Institute of Paris.