2023-09-23 18:06:00
“Hello Marseille, hello France!”: it was with these words, in French, that Pope Francis opened the giant mass on Saturday at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, a one-day cathedral, in front of several tens of thousands of people, including President Emmanuel Macron.
Arriving around 4:00 p.m. at the stadium, the Pope first enjoyed a sequence in a “papamobile”, going up Avenue du Prado, from the Mediterranean Sea, under the mistral and a bright sun. As he passed, the crowd greeted, waving French, Marseille or Vatican flags, while chants of “long live the Pope, welcome to Marseille!” rang out.
After going around the lawn, still in his “Papamobile”, the Pope took his place on a vast stage installed in the north bend, decorated with a statue of the Virgin and dominated by an eight meter high cross .
Upon his arrival, a gigantic “tifo” was organized by OM supporters, representing the bust of the sovereign pontiff next to the “Good Mother”, the Notre-Dame-de-La-Garde basilica. Behind this banner, unfurled from the roof of the south turn, the thousands of spectators dressed in chasubles in the club’s colors first drew a blue cross on a white background (the Marseille flag), before brandishing golden leaves making up a huge “Thank you”.
Faced with this unusual spectacle for a mass, a big smile lit up Francis’ face.
Before the start of the service, several artists had paraded on stage: the Christian “pop-praise” group Glorious, the comedian Gad Elmaleh, the singer Grégoire… while the olas followed one another in the stands.
The pope then delivered a homily, warning (in Italian) against “cynicism, disenchantment, resignation, uncertainty, a general feeling of sadness”, which he called “sad passions?, an expression that Emmanuel Macron is also fond of.
The presence of the Head of State at this mass had also been criticized by left-wing elected officials, in the name of respect for secularism, while certain far-right elected officials preferred to boycott the mass citing the Pope’s speech. on migrants.
“Proud”
Among the other distinguished guests, the president of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde, the Renaissance boss of the Paca region Renaud Muselier, the LR president of the department Martine Vassal.
In the stands and on the lawn, covered for the occasion with white plastic tiles, two days after the victory here of the French rugby team against Namibia, nearly 60,000 spectators took their seats for this XXL mass .
For this event, an “extraordinary” security system according to the authorities was deployed, mobilizing 6,000 members of the police and a thousand private security agents. But the liturgical system was also exceptional, with a choir of 834 singers (all had to pass an audition), 600 communion points identifiable by their blue umbrellas, 600 priests and nearly 80 French bishops announced… And, for the quest, hundreds of digital baskets, allowing the faithful to pay by bank card.
In the crowd, Christians of different faiths were present, but also some Muslims and many families and young people.
“It’s an honor to come, I find that it’s important today, in a multicultural and multicultural community, to be able to extend a hand to one’s brothers,” Cécile Pivert, 57, explained to AFP. from Salon-de-Provence.
“It’s exceptional, we’ve been talking about it with young people for a year,” assured, very moved, Sandrine Di Maccio, who came from Aubagne with around fifty Guides de France scouts aged six to 18 years old.
The enthusiasm was palpable before the start of the ceremony: “People are proud” to have the pope, “they are fervent”, assured Coralie Duval, 50, busy distributing Vatican flags at the price that the faithful were willing to pay.
“A pope in a stadium has been seen before. But a pope at the Vélodrome stadium has never been seen before! I believe that this evening, even the Good Mother has a tear in her eye,” concluded Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline, Archbishop of Marseille.
“Thank you,” François replied.
23/09/2023 18:05:35 – Marseille (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
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