From peaceful mass to violent protest: Seeking solutions for youth in turbulent France
Does faith matter? Resolving youth protests requires providing hope and faith
November 7, 2026
By Bishop Gerard Bergie
Contributing Columnist
I am sure many, like me, have been shocked by the civil unrest we are seeing across the world, especially in Europe at this moment.
To see young people protesting with great anger, violence, and senseless vandalism, is deeply troubling. The violence seems to continue without any meaningful resolutions to address this spreading crisis. The feeling of helplessness can be overwhelming.
Let us not forget the powerful images that came to us from France during the last week of September, when Pope Leo was in Paris for his apostolic journey. We witnessed 80,000 youth and young adults in a stadium praying, singing and celebrating the saints of France.
Although many lived long ago, they where presented as spiritual role models for today. About 700,000 youth and young adults lined the Champs Élysées to greet the Pope and 800,000 gathered for an outdoor mass at the Place de la Concorde. That famous square lived up to its name as those gathered experienced true peace and harmony.
Only a few weeks later, this image stood in sharp contrast to the scenes of angry students and political agitators converging on the Place de la Concorde as part of a massive nation-wide education and cost-of-living protest. What resulted was a crowd of more than 100,000 young people who were certainly not promoting peace and harmony. There was little “concord” in that place.
What was the difference?
Pope Leo gathered with 700,000 young people in the Place de la Concorde to celebrate an open-air mass. In his homily, he shared this simple message, “brothers and sisters, Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, leads us, as a shepherd leads his sheep, to the source of happiness and peace. He knows each one of us by name. Nothing about us is hidden from him … He gave his life for us … He carries the weary and wounded sheep on his shoulders and gently brings back those who have gone astray. Jesus reveals God’s unconditional love for us. In his eyes, none of us is merely a number but a unique and irreplaceable person … In essence, the human person is a being of desire, and only God can fill the emptiness within us.”
Pope Leo challenged the youth to become the new saints of France to bring true love, hope and peace.
The same square, the same generation, but two different responses.
In September, young people came to the Place de la Concorde seeking the one who knows them by name. Weeks later, others came feeling discouraged and disenfranchised because they seemed to have no future. What they were offered provided little hope and few answers. They chose protest because they felt powerless.
The Prophet Isaiah offers some beautiful words that speak to this situation. He states:
“(God) gives power to the faint and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with the wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31)
These beautiful words remind us that our youth can easily feel tired and weary when faced with overwhelming situations.
What we need to offer them is an opportunity to soar rather than sour. The image rising with the wings of an eagle is indeed inspiring. This happens when we turn to the Lord and allow him to renew our strength.
Faith in God can provide a source of hope for our young. Do we believe that faith matters?