Pope Leo XIV ended a landmark four-day trip to France today with a blunt warning that ties between countries are fraying into what he described as growing “uncivilised” behaviour, and with a call for Europe to help halt a spiral of “lies and deceit”.
Addressing crowds and dignitaries in Metz, an eastern city close to the German border, the head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics avoided naming any leaders directly.
Leo has repeatedly cast Europe as a needed counterweight among major powers, and he has previously urged the European Union to move past internal strains and recover a sense of common purpose in the pursuit of peace in Ukraine and elsewhere.
The first pontiff from the United States, Leo has in recent months been at odds with President Donald Trump, clashing over the U.S. crackdown on immigration and the war on Iran.
“Relations between individuals and states are becoming increasingly uncivilised. The value of keeping one’s word is dismissed. Instead, people boast of lies and deceit,” Leo said in French, standing alongside President Emmanuel Macron and a small group of other leaders.
“Europe can help to break this cycle through the respect for others that it has learned to cultivate and preserve,” Pope Leo said, marking the first official papal visit to France in nearly two decades.
Metz carries its own European symbolism: the city has shifted between France and Germany through past conflicts and is linked to Robert Schuman—widely seen as a founding father of the European Union—who is buried just outside the city.
Mr Macron was in Metz to bid the Pope farewell.
“We’re sad that he’s leaving, but happy that everything went well,” he said.
Pope with ‘political stand’
Over the course of the visit, Leo projected a relaxed presence—smiling often, leaning into brief exchanges, and repeatedly stopping to acknowledge the crowds.
“We are very pleased to have a Pope who dares to take a political stand,” said Isabelle Gerber, a Protestant pastor.
Earlier today, the pontiff—an aviation enthusiast—spent about half an hour in the cockpit of the Air France plane that carried him to Metz, and he also blessed the crews of the Rafale fighter jets that escorted his aircraft.
In his remarks, Leo pressed for “courage in negotiation” and a willingness to compromise to end fighting on the continent, in an apparent reference to Russia’s war against Ukraine, now in its fifth year.
“Sadly, war has returned, even to Europe,” he said.
“We need to commit ourselves to patient dialogue, to show courage in negotiation and to be willing to give up some positions for the greater good of peace.”
Vladimir Putin has shown little readiness to negotiate an end to the war against Ukraine.
Leo also appealed for unity at a moment when nationalist movements are gaining ground across Europe. In France, the anti-immigration far right is aiming to win next year’s election and replace Macron, a centrist.
He said Europe was “entering a new stage” as men and women fleeing war and persecution arrive, and he urged countries to welcome them.
“We must grasp the historical significance of what is taking place, namely an unprecedented encounter between peoples and cultures.”
Three undocumented migrants, including a 10-year-old boy, died off the French coast while trying to cross the Channel to Britain today, French authorities said.
‘Something very positive’
Standing alongside the Pope, Mr Macron argued that Europe must push back against a nationalist resurgence.
Europe “must rediscover the courage of its founders – yes, courage – in order to become the force for peace, independence and democracy that it is meant to be,” he said.
Later in the day, Leo travelled through Metz in his popemobile before celebrating mass at St. Stephen’s Cathedral, a Gothic landmark known for its stained-glass windows.
Mr Macron and his wife Brigitte attended the service.
Pointing to Metz—shaped by two world wars—Leo said in his homily that reconciliation becomes possible “only” when people find the strength to “break the chains of resentment”.
The trip has energised many believers in a secular country with deep Catholic roots, with supporters turning out in large numbers to catch a glimpse of the pontiff.
“Whether you’re deeply religious or not, seeing so much joy is moving,” Celine Denis, 53, said in Metz.
“It gives you the feeling of a truce, of something very positive in a context that is anything but positive, because everything feels anxiety-inducing.”
