What is this conference on popular piety in the Mediterranean, in which Francis will participate?

A rather confidential event at first, it has been talked about since Francis decided to deliver the closing speech there, Sunday morning, with a message on a theme that marked his pontificate: popular piety. The Sovereign Pontiff will honor his presence for the final hours of a conference entitled “Popular religiosity in the Mediterranean”. Organized by the Catholic Church of Corsica and its cardinal, Mgr François Bustillo, this event will take place over two days. Saturday at the Campo dell’Oro Hotel, on the outskirts of Ajaccio (Southern Corsica), then the next day at the town’s Palais des Congrès.

A moment of exchange and reflection

All weekend, the conference will be hosted by Father Louis El Rahi, a priest from Calvi (Upper Corsica) of Lebanese origin. The bishopric of Ajaccio has planned several round tables and discussions around the role of constantly evolving popular traditions in contemporary Mediterranean societies.

The conference will bring together prelates from the Mediterranean shores, each providing insight into popular piety in their respective regions. Mgr Nicolas Brouwet, Bishop of Nîmes, will speak on the role of evangelization through popular traditions. Mgr Roberto Carboni, Archbishop of Oristano in Sardinia, will detail the specificities of Sardinian piety, while his Sicilian counterpart, Mgr Calogero Peri, Bishop of Caltagirone, will share his testimony on religious practices in Sicily. Mgr. Juan Miguel Ferrer, vicar general of Toledo, will focus on processions and the place of popular faith in Spain. Another highlight of the event will be the study of commitment to Corsican brotherhoods.

Corsican academics will also be present to explore the complex relationships between popular religiosity and secularism on the island, in particular the way in which the sacred is inscribed in the island political space. These reflections will shed light on the uniqueness of Corsica, where 90% of the population claims to be Catholic, a percentage well above that observed on the continent.

This is not the first time that the head of the Catholic Church has visited France to attend the closing of a conference. This was already the case during his apostolic trip to Marseille, on September 22 and 23, 2023. He participated in a conference on migration in the Mediterranean.

Popular faith is a theme dear to the heart of Francis. Italian-Argentine, the pope is immersed in these simple and pious manifestations of faith (processions, venerations of saints, pilgrimages, etc.). He even considers them beneficial, such as an “immune system of the Church” rooted in immutable traditions. On this subject, the pope did not hesitate to ask in his fourth encyclical letter Dilexit Nos, published last October, “that no one mocks expressions of believing fervor.”