French President Emmanuel Macron and Pope Leo XIV meet with authorities, members of civil society and the diplomatic corps at the Elysee Palace in Paris Sept. 25, 2026, as part of Pope Leo\u2019s four-day apostolic journey to France. (OSV News photo\/Benoit Tessier, pool via Reuters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nInitially called to protest the rising cost of living, the Oct. 17 demonstrations came amid a high school student protest movement that had evolved into a wider urban uprising since late September. Joined by far-left activists and masked rioters, some demonstrators clashed with police, leaving hundreds of officers injured, and carried out attacks on schools and other public property.<\/p>\n
Rioters smashed storefronts to loot shops, with desperate owners trying to protect their property, and set cars on fire in numerous cities across France.<\/p>\n
City halls and public buildings were attacked, severely damaged or completely destroyed. Limoges City Hall, a historic 19th-century building in central France, was almost entirely ravaged by a spectacular fire.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Cardinal Aveline: France deserves better \u2014<\/p>\n
The president of the bishops\u2019 conference, Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline of Marseille, also condemned \u201cunacceptable violence\u201d in his Oct. 18 statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet us not get caught up in the spiral of this violence,\u201d Cardinal Aveline said. \u201cOur city and our country deserve better than this. Together with all believers, let us pray for an end to these disturbances and for peace to return.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cardinal Aveline, who witnessed the violence in Marseille, France\u2019s second-largest city, wrote that \u201cour city, like many others in France, has been the victim of unacceptable violence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the sidelines of planned demonstrations, shops were looted, churches were broken into, the town hall was invaded and vandalized, a police station was ransacked, and members of the security forces were attacked,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlong with the entire Church of Marseille, I wish to express my support and solidarity with those who were injured and with the shopkeepers who were victims of this vandalism,\u201d Cardinal Aveline said.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Archbishop of Lyon points to a \u2018society in crisis\u2019 \u2014<\/p>\n
Archbishop Olivier de Germay deplored the destruction that took place in Lyon, another major city, of which he is the archbishop.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe violence that occurred in Lyon on Oct. 17 goes far beyond the scope of a protest in which legitimate grievances can be expressed,\u201d he wrote on X on Oct. 18. \u201cThe city was the scene of clashes, hatred, destruction, and looting \u2014 all of which are unacceptable. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the shop owners, law enforcement, and all those who were victims of these excesses, including those who wanted to demonstrate peacefully.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Archbishop de Germay, the urgent need now is to act as \u201cpeacemakers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am well aware that this violence is a sign of a society in crisis,\u201d he stated. \u201cBut I want to reiterate emphatically that it is a dead end and can only lead to further injustices and divisions. It is not by pitting one group against another, but by working together, that we will be able to meet the challenges facing our society.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reactions of deep dismay were evident throughout France on Oct. 18, with commentators expressing the \u201cshame\u201d of seeing the country so disfigured by looters and rioters bent on compulsive destruction. \u201cWhat is happening to us?\u201d wrote J\u00e9r\u00f4me Chapuis, editor-in-chief of the Catholic daily La Croix. \u201cThe outburst of violence on that fateful October 17 is disheartening, disturbing, and a source of shame for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chapuis pointed out to \u201cthe architects of chaos, influencers, or political parties engaged in the race toward extremes,\u201d as those responsible for the damages as much as violent rioters themselves. He also called for accountability as Paris and other major cities witnessed post-warzone scenes on the morning of Oct. 19.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Voices of those tired of unrest highlight pope\u2019s message to lawmakers \u2014<\/p>\n
From the arrogance of protesters, Chapuis wrote, rose another form of anger in France, not even a month after a much successful papal visit in the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the peaceful anger of men and women of good will who, in the diversity of their opinions and the ways they engage in political action, contemplate the ruins.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFaced with the image of the burned-out Limoges City Hall, the recent echo of a speech comes to mind,\u201d Chapuis said, referring to the words of Pope Leo XIV at the \u00c9lys\u00e9e Palace, the seat of the French presidency, on the day of his arrival in France on Sept. 25.<\/p>\n
\u201cLiberty, equality and fraternity are not simply words emblazoned on the front of your public buildings; they refer to universal ethical imperatives that also find in the Gospel message an inexhaustible source of inspiration and fulfillment,\u201d the pope said that day, addressing President Emmanuel Macron and the officials present.<\/p>\n
For Chapuis, the papal words \u201cwould do well to be heard again by all those who cherish civil peace \u2014 those who know its value and its fragility.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014 President Macron: how the French could do this to France \u2014<\/p>\n
In Paris, where entire streets had been ravaged, the violence was still ongoing on the evening of Oct. 18 as President Macron addressed the nation on television.<\/p>\n
\u201cWatching these images, we all asked ourselves how the French could do this to France,\u201d Pr\u00e9sident Macron said. \u201cHow could they have come to this? Nothing justifies it; nothing explains it.\u201d He referred to the many shop owners who had to \u201cdefend their stores themselves against criminals,\u201d attributing responsibility for this \u201cunbridled violence\u201d to \u201ctroublemakers from far-left fringe groups joined by numerous criminals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Macron concluded his address by referring to the upcoming presidential elections, which will take place in April and May 2027.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll those who are telling you today that the urgent need is to take to the streets, to protest, to create disorder have only one goal: to undermine the Republic and hijack the debate,\u201d he lamented.<\/p>\n
\u201cDebates must take place in public meetings. They must take place with the political parties, not in the streets through violence,\u201d Macron continued. \u201cThey must take place in newspapers, on television programs, and at peaceful gatherings, where people speak and explain themselves with respect \u2014 never amid chaos and destruction. Our country deserves a great presidential election in six months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith all believers,\u201d he said, \u201cwe pray that these disturbances will cease, that legitimate demands will be heard and addressed, and that, through dialogue and respect for justice, peace may return.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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