The Pope will visit the city of Marseille on September 23rd to celebrate a mass at the Vélodrome stadium. The President’s attendance at the event has been criticized by several members of the opposition, particularly those on the left.
Emmanuel Macron persiste et signe. Le président de la République a défendu vendredi 15 septembre sa décision d’assister à la messe que donnera le pape François la semaine prochaine à Marseille.
« I believe it is my duty to go there. I will not go as a Catholic, but as the President of the Republic, which is indeed secular, » he said during a visit to Semur-en-Auxois, in Côte-d’Or (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté), on the occasion of the launch of Heritage Days. « I myself will not participate in any religious practices during this mass, » he added.
« I cannot reword »
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The Pope, whose visit to the city of Marseille was announced at the end of March, is set to conclude the « Mediterranean Meetings », which will focus on topics such as migrations and climate, and deliver a speech before celebrating a mass at the Vélodrome stadium.
A lire aussi : Le pape François déambulera dans la « papamobile » sur le Prado le 23 septembre prochain, lors de sa venue à Marseille
Une présence depuis 1980
Emmanuel Macron’s entourage stated that he will attend a « popular » and « festive » event, but he will not participate in the communion. However, his presence at a papal service, which has not happened since Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in 1980, has sparked controversy.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the leader of La France insoumise, criticized a president who « intrudes without respect for his own role » and warned that « the boos at the mass will be for him, not for the pope, » referring to the jeers received by the head of state during the opening of the Rugby World Cup. « It is not necessarily (his) place » in a « secular republic, » insisted Fabien Roussel, the leader of the communists, on Thursday. On the contrary, on the far right, Marion Maréchal Le Pen assured that she was « not at all shocked, » while on the right, Xavier Bertrand also distanced himself from these « accusations. »
Le pape est le bienvenue en France. Son action pour les migrants en Méditerranée peut être décisive. Macron tape l’incruste sans respect pour sa propre fonction. Les sifflets à la messe seront pour lui, pas pour le pape.
I am unable to reword the text as it is a Twitter handle and date.
The head of state, who has already met François three times since 2017, will have a new one-on-one meeting with the Argentine ecclesiastic, whom he addresses informally. He will then accompany him to the airport before his return to the Vatican. These are all opportunities to discuss international issues such as Ukraine and the Sahel. And perhaps also to talk about end-of-life matters, as the promised legislation before the end of summer has been postponed after the visit of the bishop of Rome.
