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Friday September 22, 19/20 info looks back on the latest papal visits to the country and on the relationship, sometimes tense, between France, nicknamed the “eldest daughter of the Church”, and the Vatican.
It is a tormented relationship between the popes and France. Fascinated by its history, by its saints, as much as they were frustrated by the loss of influence of Catholicism in the country. On an apostolic trip to France in the 1980s, Pope John Paul II questioned the place of the Church in France: “Eldest daughter of the church, are you faithful to the promises of your baptism?” For his successor Benedict XVI, the decline of Christianity in Europe is a priority.
Pope Francis breaking with his predecessors
Pope Francis marks a break with his predecessors; he is especially interested in the countries of the South, which represent 80% of Catholics in the world. This is also why he chose Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône), a Mediterranean city. A symbol for the sovereign pontiff, who makes welcoming migrants and openness to others one of his main fights.