Around 700,000 gather in Paris for open-air Mass led by Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo XIV's first official visit to France culminated on Saturday in an open-air Mass at Place de la Concorde in central Paris, drawing an estimated 700,000 people according to Vatican figures, who packed both the square and the Champs-Élysées avenue.

Before the service, the 71-year-old leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics rode down the avenue in his open-top "popemobile," waving to crowds pressed against security barriers. He stopped repeatedly to bless babies handed forward by volunteers and to greet people with disabilities positioned in the front ranks.

On a stage beneath a large white canopy, accompanied by a choir and organ music, Leo XIV, dressed in white vestments decorated with olive branches, urged Catholics to seek happiness through faith rather than material possessions. His remarks were periodically interrupted by the sound of helicopters overhead.

Volunteers and attendees

Volunteers in yellow t-shirts, including members of the French Scouts and experienced helpers at major Catholic gatherings, handed out flags and guided attendees through the crowded avenue and its many road closures.

Among those present were nuns from France's Burgundy region, families with young children — including a US-born mother who brought her two daughters — and people who had traveled from various parts of France, some describing Catholicism as a faith that receives little public visibility in the country. Several attendees said they were not particularly religious but came to see the pope as a notable public figure.

A number of people described going to considerable lengths to attend, including arranging last-minute time off work, with several calling the event a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.