Pope Leo XIV’s one-day visit to Monaco sparks questions over choice of wealthy principality for his first European trip.
VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV travels to Monaco on Saturday for a one-day visit, his first in Europe since his election last year.
The choice of the tiny Mediterranean principality has caused puzzlement among many observers.
Monaco is the world’s second smallest state after the Vatican and remains resolutely Catholic.
Ties between the two states date back to the Middle Ages, sharing interests like interfaith dialogue and environmental protection.
Yet commentators question the purpose of the eight-hour trip, his second abroad after visiting Turkey and Lebanon last year.
Philippe Orengo, Monaco’s ambassador to the Holy See, said the pope wanted to see a resurgence in Catholicism there.
The pope “wanted to see for himself what is happening in Monaco, where this movement of renewal is based on an embraced faith,” he said.
In this first modern papal trip to Monaco, Leo will meet Prince Albert II and tour in his popemobile before holding a mass.
Large crowds are expected from Monaco’s 39,000 inhabitants and surrounding France.
The discreet American has so far drawn less fervour than his predecessor, the reformer Pope Francis.
Monaco is steeped in Catholic tradition and abortion remains illegal there, though it has been decriminalised.
As a tax haven known for casinos and legal prostitution, Monaco is not everyone’s idea of a Catholic state.
It seems an incongruous location for Pope Leo, who has prioritised the poor and marginalised.
“One of Monaco’s distinctive features is a kind of positive secularism,” senior clergyman Guillaume Paris told AFP.
The pope will arrive by helicopter, a diplomatic subtlety avoiding a landing on French soil.
He will then visit the princely palace for a private meeting with Prince Albert.
The two men share a concern for ecology and a passion for sport, according to the Monaco diocese.
The visit’s highlight is an open-air mass at the Louis II Stadium where around 15,000 people are expected.
A heavy security operation is in place, comparable to that for the Monaco Grand Prix.
