Vatican turns down Macron's request for private Notre-Dame tour with Pope Leo XIV
The Vatican Secretariat of State has turned down French President Emmanuel Macron's request to accompany Pope Leo XIV on a private tour of Notre-Dame Cathedral, citing the pope's packed schedule during his three-day trip to France
Pope Leo XIV will not be able to accept French President Emmanuel Macron's invitation to a private tour of Notre-Dame Cathedral during his trip to France at the end of September. The Vatican Secretariat of State turned down the proposal, a French Catholic outlet confirmed, saying the pope's schedule is very tight and includes an outdoor Mass in Paris expected to draw about half a million people.
Leo XIV arrives in France on September 26 and will stay three days. The visit begins in Paris, before he travels to Lourdes and then to Metz. According to the correspondent for La Croix, a French Catholic daily, Macron had asked to show the pope the cathedral before he presides at Vespers there on his first day in the country. The cathedral, recently restored at a cost of more than 700 million euros, will be one of the main stops on the trip, but without a protocol meeting beforehand.
Leo XIV will still meet Macron at the start of the visit, at the Elysee Palace. A 45-minute meeting is scheduled before the pope addresses the civil authorities present. The Vatican Secretariat of State said the pope's tight schedule and the wish that the cathedral be "returned to the faithful at the end of Vespers" were decisive factors in the decision.
Context and pastoral focus
The trip comes after France recently approved a law on euthanasia. The decision has prompted speculation about whether it could be read as a sign of displeasure toward the president. Some sources have played down that reading, suggesting the request was better suited to a state visit than to an apostolic journey.
The trip has been organized with a pastoral focus, giving priority to contact with the Catholic community, particularly at places such as Lourdes and Notre-Dame. Catholics have voiced concern about a lack of papal attention in the past, particularly under Pope Francis, who never made an apostolic journey to France.
Leo XIV previously met Macron in a private audience on April 10 of this year. Many Catholics expect the pope to address the euthanasia law during his stay. The Holy See has stressed that the trip is to remain an apostolic and pastoral visit, without political overtones.
