The pope named no politician or party. But his defense of diversity and religious freedom lands as Le Pen’s National Rally campaigns against immigration ahead of a presidential election she hopes to win for the first time.
“This dialogue is all the more urgent in the context of present-day France, where the people of differing cultural and religious backgrounds are called to live together,” the pontiff continued.
Standing in front of French government members and church dignitaries, the pope also argued against pushing religion out of public life, weeks after the National Rally said it was in favor of banning the Muslim headscarf. “Righteous secularism doesn’t mean excluding religion from public spaces,” he said.
Macron said the pope brought “hope” to France and praised his work on artificial intelligence and human dignity.
The papal visit will take Leo from the Élysée to UNESCO, Notre-Dame Cathedral and a youth vigil at the Stade de France. He will celebrate Mass on Saturday, expected to gather 600,000 people on the Champs-Elysées in Paris.
French politics have become deeply polarized in recent years, with the far-right National Rally and the far-left France Unbowed gaining popularity, just as traditional parties struggle to attract voters after a decade of Macron’s presidency.