But what on earth can you do with 27 million euros in four days? The answer can be summed up in two words: welcoming and managing. We need to put up kilometres of barriers, giant screens so that a huge crowd can follow the celebrations, sound systems, toilets and temporary structures, organise transport, accommodate the pilgrims, provide meals and accommodation, and set up the necessary infrastructure for the thousands of people working on the event. In particular, nearly 2,500 journalists have been accredited. *Le Parisien* reports that around 20 million euros of the 27 million will be spent on the Paris leg alone.
The figure is all the more spectacular given that the initial budget was much lower. At the beginning of June, the Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, was still referring to a total budget of around 10 million euros. The expected scale of the turnout of the faithful and the logistical requirements have caused the estimate to soar to the current figure of 27 million. The French Bishops’ Conference explains, in particular, that it had to step up logistical, security and staging resources in response to the enthusiasm generated by the visit.
One crucial point must be made clear, however, before viewing this 27 million as a new expense for the State: this sum is not being presented as being paid for by the French taxpayer. The organisational budget is being covered by the Church in France, which has launched a major fundraising campaign. The Vatican does not fund the general organisation of the visit in the host country, apart from expenses relating to its own delegation. As of 22 September, approximately 8 million euros had been raised, according to information provided to *Le Parisien*, meaning that nearly 19 million still needed to be raised.
There is, however, one significant exception: public security. The deployment of police officers, gendarmes and other state services falls squarely within the remit of the public authorities and is not included in the 27 million euros announced by the Church. The Ministry of the Interior has, moreover, confirmed a particularly extensive security operation, against the backdrop of a heightened Vigipirate alert. Security perimeters will be put in place, and the police prefectures of Paris, the Hautes-Pyrénées and Moselle have been working for several weeks with the teams responsible for the Pope’s security, the Swiss Guard and the Vatican Gendarmerie.
In other words, the actual cost of these four days to the public purse as a whole will inevitably exceed the much-cited figure of 27 million, as public expenditure on security must be added to this. However, the figures currently available do not yet allow for a reliable estimate of the total cost borne by the State. It would therefore make no sense to simply add up police salaries, travel costs, air security and prefectural security measures at random to come up with a spectacular figure.
Why, then, spend so much on a religious visit to a country where Catholic practice has declined considerably? Because a Pope is not merely a religious leader. He is also the Head of State of the Vatican, a global diplomatic figure and the spiritual leader of a Church with over a billion followers. His visit therefore encompasses several dimensions at once: religious, political, media-related, tourist-related and diplomatic.
The programme itself illustrates this ongoing ambiguity. Pope Leo XIV will be received at the Élysée Palace, visit UNESCO headquarters, and celebrate Mass at Notre-Dame, along the Concorde–Champs-Élysées axis, in Lourdes and in Metz. His visit to Metz also carries a particular symbolic significance: Robert Schuman, one of the founding fathers of European integration, is buried there, and the Pope is due to deliver a message on peace and European unity.
The issue of the 27 million reveals, above all, something rather fascinating about our times. France is a constitutionally secular country, where churches are emptying in many regions, yet it is capable of potentially bringing together several hundred thousand people when the Pope arrives. The visit thus becomes an event that extends far beyond practising Catholics alone. People come to see a religious leader, but also a global figure, a historical symbol and, perhaps for some, the representative of a world they believed was disappearing.
There is also an economic paradox. At a time when the French Church regularly highlights its financial difficulties and relies heavily on donations from the faithful, it must find 27 million euros for four days. Moreover, the appeal for generosity is not universally welcomed even amongst Catholics themselves. Some consider that a papal visit is an event exceptional enough to justify this outlay; others would naturally prefer to see these sums allocated to parishes, charitable causes or religious heritage.
One thing remains clear: when 600,000 people are likely to gather in the heart of Paris for a single Mass, we are no longer talking about simply setting up a few chairs outside a church. A veritable temporary city is being organised, complete with screens, barriers, toilets, technical teams, first-aiders, the media and traffic management measures.
This is no doubt why four days can end up costing 27 million euros.
And this also explains why, whether you are a believer or not, it will be difficult to ignore Leo XIV when he arrives in France on Friday.
