Pope heads to tiny Catholic Monaco

Pope Leo XIV will visit Monaco on Saturday for a one-day trip, during which he will greet the Catholic faithful in the tiny Mediterranean state famed for its yachts and gambling.

Observers have expressed puzzlement over the choice of Monaco for the US-born pope’s first European visit since his election last year.

Nestled between mountains and sea on the French Riviera, Monaco is the world’s second-smallest state after the Vatican and remains staunchly Catholic.

Ties between the two states stretch back to the Middle Ages, with shared interests including interfaith dialogue and environmental protection.

Nevertheless, commentators have questioned the need for the eight-hour trip, which will be the pope’s second foreign visit after last year’s joint trip to Turkey and Lebanon.

Philippe Orengo said the pope was keen to see a country experiencing a resurgence in Catholicism in recent years.

The ambassador told AFP: “The pope wanted to see for himself what is happening in Monaco, where this movement of renewal is based on an embraced faith and on an inclusive popular piety and devotion.”

On the first modern papal visit to Monaco, Leo will meet Prince Albert II and take a tour in his popemobile before celebrating mass in the local stadium.

Large crowds are expected, drawn both from Monaco’s 39,000 residents and neighbouring France. However, the discreet American pope has attracted less fervour than his predecessor, Argentine reformer Pope Francis, who died last April after 12 years leading the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

‘Positive secularism’

Monaco is deeply Catholic, and — unlike most of Europe — abortion remains illegal there, though women crossing the border to France for the procedure are not prosecuted.

Despite its status as a tax haven built on casinos and with legalised prostitution, Monaco is an unusual setting for a visit by Pope Leo, who, like Francis, has prioritised the poor and marginalised.

“One of Monaco’s distinctive features is a kind of positive secularism, which recognises the legitimate autonomy of the spiritual and temporal spheres,” said Guillaume Paris.

“We talk to each other, we know each other, we recognise each other,” he added.

Diplomatic niceties

The pope will arrive by helicopter, a diplomatic subtlety allowing him to reach Monaco without formally landing in France.

He will then visit the princely palace, the Grimaldi dynasty’s official residence since the 13th century, for a private meeting with Prince Albert. The two men share an interest in ecology and sport; Leo, 70, swims and plays tennis regularly.

The visit’s highlight will be an open-air mass at 1430 GMT at Louis II Stadium, expected to attract around 15,000 attendees.

A heavy security and logistics operation, comparable to that of the Monaco Grand Prix, has been organised to manage the event.