Pope Leo XIV due in Metz to celebrate Mass at Saint-Étienne cathedral

Metz cathedral is preparing to receive Pope Leo XIV at a time when Europe is looking for peace and reconciliation.

Hours before the pope's arrival, set for Monday, September 28, 2026, the city of 122,572 people, according to the French national statistics institute INSEE, is finishing its preparations. The visit comes as several conflicts continue in Europe, and the local Church hopes the pope will bring a message of hope and reconciliation to a city marked by war and by changes of sovereignty.

Father Emmanuel Ecker, who oversees the formation of seminarians in the diocese and works as a university chaplain, said the visit matters to young people in the area. Many of them, he said, are looking for something more in surroundings they see as "very horizontal and materialistic." That search appears even among those from families with no religious tradition. "The word 'meaning' has a particular richness," Ecker said. He said he is convinced that faith can offer direction, meaning and a new way of experiencing life.

The pope's arrival coincides with the rite of entry into the Church for catechumens, in which those preparing for baptism publicly express their desire to follow Christ. Ecker said the rite is a first form of welcome, in which those searching for faith find a place that receives them. Young people, he said, see the pope not as an individual but as the Petrine ministry present in the midst of the community.

Metz lived through three major conflicts: the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871 and the two world wars. Louis Gineau, an altar server at the cathedral, said the memory of those wars may be the best reason to believe reconciliation is possible.

Music will feature prominently in the Mass the pope will celebrate. The Maîtrise of Metz cathedral, its choir school, and several choirs from the region will take part. Christophe Bergossi, the choir director, said the preparation has been detailed, with intensive rehearsals, and that the aim is to be in prayer and not only in song.

The city embodies Franco-German reconciliation and is linked to Robert Schuman, one of the founding fathers of European integration.

The Diocese of Metz lies in Alsace-Moselle, where a local system governing religious affairs, inherited from the Concordat of 1801, remains in force. Under that framework the Church and the state have closer ties, and Catholics in the region have greater pastoral expectations of the visit. The faithful in Metz hope the pope's words will guide a society searching for meaning and direction.

The pope will celebrate the Eucharist in Saint-Étienne cathedral, known as the "Lantern of the Good Lord," a building associated with light for centuries. Catholics there say they expect him to speak about peace, unity and reconciliation in a city where France and Germany moved from fighting each other to building the European project together.