AJACCIO – Pope Francis praised popular piety and condemned those who use it for private or political gain during a day trip Sunday to the French island of Corsica, at a time when nationalist and populist leaders in Europe and elsewhere often invoke symbols of such piety to punctuate their appeals.
He also used the occasion to appeal for peace throughout the world, especially in warring regions such as Gaza, Ukraine, and Myanmar.
Speaking at the closing session of a two-day “Popular Religiosity in the Mediterranean” congress in the Corsican capital of Ajaccio, the pope said that popular piety “reveals God’s presence in the living flesh of history, strengthens the relationship with the Church and often becomes an occasion for encounter, cultural exchange and celebration.”
However, he said it also “calls for vigilance through careful theological and pastoral discernment.”
One risk associated with popular devotion, he said, is that it can be “exploited or used by groups that seek self-aggrandizement by fueling polemics, narrow-mindedness, divisions and exclusivist attitudes.”
“None of this corresponds to the Christian spirit of popular piety, and everyone, especially the church’s pastors, is called to be vigilant, to exercise discernment and to be constantly attentive to popular forms of religiosity,” he said.
The reference is a warning that could be applied to populist politicians who have used expressions of popular devotion, such as the wearing of a cross, the kissing of a bible or the display of rosary beads, at political rallies or to promote one’s political agenda.
Both Matteo Salvini, Italy’s deputy prime minister, and French politician Marine Le Pen, deputy of the French Republic, among others, have been criticized for their use or display of religious symbols in political settings, uniting their faith to their policy positions.
Pope Francis spoke at the start of a 9-hour daytrip to the French Mediterranean island of Corsica, marking his third time visiting France, but without making an official state visit, after a 2014 visit to Strasbourg to address the European Parliament and the Council of Europe, and a 2023 trip to Marseille to close the annual “Mediterranean Meetings.”
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Francis has yet to visit Paris since his election to the papacy nearly 12 years ago, and he opted out of attending the Dec. 8 inauguration of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, which was renovated after a fire destroyed vast portions of the structure in 2019, creating 21 new cardinals that day instead.
Corsica has a strong tradition of popular devotion and is home to a variety of confraternities that are increasingly of interest to youth, who are joining a variety of local projects and initiatives.
In his speech closing the “Popular Religiosity in the Mediterranean” congress, the pope stressed the importance of collaboration between religious communities and the state, especially amid an increasingly secularized context.
“When popular piety is successful in communicating the Christian faith and the cultural values of a given people, uniting hearts and building community, it bears great fruit that has an effect on society as a whole, including relations between civil and political institutions and the Church,” he said.
Throughout the centuries, he said, the Christian faith has led to countless charitable works and projects of solidarity, including the establishment of hospitals, schools, and care centers, which he said have allowed faithful “to assist the needy and to contribute to the advancement of the common good.”
Francis stressed the need to develop “a concept of laïcité that is not static and fixed, but evolving and dynamic, capable of adapting to different and unforeseen situations, and of promoting constant cooperation between civil and ecclesial authorities for the benefit of the whole community, each within the limits of its own competences and areas of activity.”
He closed his speech calling for a continual dialogue between the religious and secular spheres, and between ecclesial and civil and political institutions, which he said, “can take place in this interweaving, without confusion, of both.”
In a speech to bishops, priests, religious and seminarians from Corsica and throughout the region, Pope Francis highlighted the challenges of evangelization in a heavily secularized culture and stressed the importance of prayer and generosity in forgiveness.
“In our European context, we face no lack of problems and challenges in passing on the faith. Each day you experience this, and can feel helpless and inadequate,” he said, noting that practicing believers are few and they lack resources.
Many also work “in an atmosphere that is open to receiving the Gospel message,” he said, saying this can actually help faithful to trust in God, rather than in themselves.
Despite the fact that France is a highly secularized society, some 81 percent of the roughly 355,528 inhabitants of Corsica are Catholic, and there are over 430 parishes on the island.
After his arrival to the island Sunday morning, the pope was greeted by a strong turnout of locals and faithful who lined the streets to welcome him, cheering and holding flags and banners of nearby cities and regions as he passed by.
Speaking to bishops, clergy and religious, the pope urged them to put God at the center of their lives and to avoid harmful attitudes such as worldliness and vanity, calling the latter “a terrible vice.”
In a largely off-the-cuff speech, he challenged them to question themselves about the status of their faith, and the strength of their prayer life, asking if they visit the chapels in their houses at some point during the day, or just pass by.
“At least be polite, say hi, see you tomorrow!” he jested, to laughs and applause.
Francis urged clergy and religious not to get so carried away with work and activities that they wear themselves out but told them to take care of themselves and others.
“Priests, sisters or deacons who neglect themselves will also end up neglecting the people entrusted to their care,” he said, and stressed the importance of daily prayer and reception of the Eucharist.
The pope also urged them to be close to the people they serve, sharing their joys and sorrows, and to avoid attitudes such as jealousy, instead pursuing “Gospel simplicity” and maintaining a good sense of humor.
Forgiveness is also key to ministry, he said, telling priests not to “torture” penitents in confession and to “forgive everything, always,” saying he himself in his 53 years as a priest has never denied absolution to anyone.
In a region marked by various conflicts, Pope Francis also made an appeal for peace throughout the world, asking God to obtain “Peace for Palestine, for Israel, for Lebanon, for Syria, and for the whole Middle East! Peace for the martyred Myanmar.”
“May the Holy Mother of God obtain the peace so greatly desired by the Ukrainian and Russian peoples. War is always a defeat. Peace to the whole world!” he said, and also condemned “wars in religious communities, the wars in parishes,” before leading faithful in praying the traditional Marian Angelus prayer.
In his final act in Corsica Sunday, the pope celebrated Mass at the Place d’Austerlitz monument in the Corsican capital of Ajaccio, telling Catholics to adopt an attitude of humility, trust and joy as the commemoration of Jesus’s incarnation at Christmas approaches.
He referred in his homily to the day’s Gospel passage from Luke in which the crowd asks John the Baptist, “what then should we do?”
Catholics must also ask themselves what to do to have a humbler and trusting heart during the remainder of the Advent season, he said.
Christians, he said, can either have an attitude of joyful expectation or suspicion, distrust and anxiety, focusing excessively on “worldly concerns” and consumerism, thus ending up disappointed and distant from God.
Prayer is a strong remedy for this, he said, and urged faithful to pray the rosary and frequent local confraternities, which make up a significant portion of Catholic life in Corsica, increasingly among youth.
These traditional confraternities, he said, “have much to teach us about generously serving our neighbors by works of spiritual and corporal mercy.”
“Despite sufferings that affect nations and peoples, the Church proclaims an unshakable hope that does not disappoint, because the Lord has come and dwells in our midst. And in his coming, our efforts to work for peace and justice find inexhaustible strength,” he said.
After Mass Pope Francis will hold a private meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Ajaccio International Airport before flying back to Rome.
Follow Elise Ann Allen on X: @eliseannallen
