Papal Visit to Corsica highlights Mediterranean Catholicism’s diverse spirituality

Matthew Neugebauer

Friday, December 13, 2024

Large orange-coloured baroque cathedral facade, surrounded by shorter apartment buildings and a blue fishing boat nestled in greenery in front

Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, Ajaccio, and its surrounding neighbourhood. The blue fishing boat in the foreground evokes Corsica's Mediterranean island identity. Wikimedia Commons.

Pope Francis is fitting in one more Apostolic Journey before 2024 ends.

On Sunday, December 15, he's making a short trip to Ajaccio on the island of Corsica, just across the Tyrrhenian Sea in the Mediterranean. The island sits north of the Italian island of Sardinia, and is quite close to mainland Italy, but has long been French territory. Since the Holy Father is technically travelling to France, this counts as his 47th journey abroad.

The main purpose of his visit is to address the La Religiosité Populaire en Méditerranée Congress, a conference dedicated to the spiritual and liturgical life of the region. He'll give the closing talk of the Congress, and lead the Angelus with clergy, religious, and seminarians of the diocese at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption. Later on, he’ll celebrate Mass at Place d'Austerlitz, an outdoor square featuring a statue of the legendary and complicated Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who was born in Ajaccio. The pope will meet briefly with French President Emmanuel Macron before returning to Rome.

Corsica’s location and history as a waypoint in the Mediterranean make it a prime location for the conference. Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo, Bishop of Ajaccio, described to Vatican News that it will bring together “bishops from Sicily, Sardinia, Spain, and France” to present on popular devotions and public liturgical processions. He said that these diverse expressions of Catholic faith offer “an opportunity to evangelize through the popular traditions passed down to us by our ancestors.”

It’s fitting that the conference will culminate in Pope Francis’ address. His visit to Corsica carries forward a major theme of this pontificate: an urgent call to celebrate and preserve the Mediterranean as a place of global human encounter. This focus on the Mediterranean was first introduced in his Penitential Journey to Lampedusa in 2013, and was more recently expressed in his 2023 visit to Marseille for the Rencontres Méditerranéennes conference. This time around, the chief pastor of the Church along with the La Religiosité Populaire Congress will turn to the power of spirituality and popular devotion to foster this encounter.

Salt + Light TV is pleased to broadcast Pope Francis' Angelus with Bishops, Priests, and Seminarians at 12 pm ET / 9 am PT, and the celebration of Holy Mass at Place d'Austerlitz at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT.