Pope Leo XIV celebrated an open-air Mass for an estimated 700,000 people in central Paris on Saturday, the Vatican said. The crowds packed the Champs-Elysees and Place de la Concorde during the American pope's four-day visit to France.

He rode down a sealed-off, 2-kilometer route aboard the popemobile, greeting flag-waving crowds and blessing babies lifted toward him. In his homily, he asked Catholics not to keep their faith to themselves. "Let it overflow, so that those you meet may be refreshed and their thirst satisfied," he said.

The turnout beat the 600,000 who had registered in advance. Guests included First Lady Brigitte Macron, billionaire Bernard Arnault and Marine Le Pen. About 80,000 young people had attended a stadium gathering with the pope the night before.

Central Paris was closed to traffic under a major security operation, but the mood stayed festive. The crowd included people of many faiths and no faith at all. During the visit Leo also spoke on war, diplomacy and the risks of artificial intelligence.

The turnout shows the Catholic Church's lasting cultural pull in France, despite years of falling Mass attendance in the officially secular country.