The decision to hold a “compulsory” school day dedicated to the pontiff in Catholic schools, just days before Pope Leo XIV’s arrival in France, from September 25 to 28, raises questions and has ignited a debate over secularism.
An internal memo, leaked to the left-leaning daily Libération, dated 10 September, from the General Secretariat for Catholic Education (Sgec), led by Guillaume Prévost, instructs state-funded private schools under contract to observe Friday 25 September, the day Leo XIV arrives, as a special day and to replace regular lessons with activities on the Pope, the Catholic Church and various social issues.
The paper says “the day must be compulsory for pupils as well as for all teachers and staff, in the same way as any other school day”. The SGEc advises primary schools to make paper doves or a mural on peace, and to introduce kids to the Vatican and the function of the pope. In lower and upper secondary, kids will be able, in instance, to study the speech Leo XIV is expected to deliver at UNESCO or work on the theme of the ‘civilisation of love’.
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