All Ile-de-France Catholics see Leo XIV at their doorstep
We often ignore it: 30% of regularly practicing Catholics live in Île-de-France*. This shows that the Pope’s Parisian stopover is important. If, on the occasion of the open-air mass at Place de la Concorde, regular or occasional practitioners** from all over France will be present, the fact remains that Ile-de-France residents will be in number.
Very diverse, this “Parisian Catholicism” is a reflection of French Catholicism which is experiencing a new lease of life. He happily welcomed a “new surge of neophytes and catechumens”, described by Cardinal Aveline as one of the reasons for the coming of Leo XIV to France.
Various sensitivities
The pope also embodies popular devotion, through places like Notre-Dame de Paris, the Sacré-Cœur basilica or the chapel on rue du Bac. Here, Mary appeared in the 19the century to a nun, leading to the creation of the Miraculous Medal, which has already sold more than a billion copies throughout the world. These sites are symbolic of the influx experienced by sanctuaries and places of Marian devotion in France, welcoming more than 20 million pilgrims and tourists per year***.
“Moreover, Paris is the image of French Catholicism as it has become today, with both a decrease in the number of Catholics and an internal recomposition of religious practice which is becoming urban,” explains Martin Dumont, historian and secretary general of the Research Institute for the Study of Religions.
In Île-de-France, we find both a diocese like Versailles – alone providing around 5% of French seminarians – and that of Saint-Denis, whose youth ministry is among the most dynamic of French dioceses.
In addition, this Parisian Catholicism concentrates many of the major current sensitivities: Christians committed to the poor, missionary parishes, “traditional” renewal or polarization between Catholics of the left and the right, or even the extremes. However, an entire section is missing: the rural world and all its specificities, representing almost half of the dioceses.
Unify in faith
One thing is striking: the figure of Leo
“Everyone is very happy that the pope is coming but for various reasons,” summarizes historian Martin Dumont. Everyone has a different vision. » A real challenge for Leo XIV, whose motto, “In him who is one, let us be one”, recalls the challenge of this journey for French Catholics: the unification of the faith.
*Going to mass at least once a month. Bayard-La Croix-Ifop study, December 8, 2025.
**Going to mass less than once a month but having made a commitment in the name of their faith, Ibid.
***Source: Sanctuary Cities Association in France.
