5 notable reactions to violent riots roiling France: 'They're destroying that country'
5. Winston Marshall: 'This other spirit'
During a 90-minute episode of the popular U.K.-based TRIGGERnometry podcast about the protests, English podcaster Winston Marshall said there may be signs of Christian revival in France, even as aspects of its society appear to be darkening. The podcast, which aired Oct. 9 before the most recent escalations, focused on some of the deeper problems driving the rioters, including a lack of meaning or national identity.
Marshall claimed that one counterpoint the mainstream media has "massively missed" is that "the pope visited France at the end of September, and he was greeted by between 800,000 and a million people on Champs-Élysées. The whole of the Stade de France [stadium] was full for him, and he was at various places around the country."
Pope Leo XIV drew massive crowds during his Apostolic Journey to France in September, including an 800,000-person outdoor Mass in Paris and another with 150,000 people in Lourdes, according to CBS News.
The mass display of French Christians communing together during the papal tour was "quite astonishing to see," said Marshall, who noted it was a striking contrast to the riots and could suggest another side to the spiritual battle engulfing France.
"I'm not sure if it's right to call it a Catholic revival or something, but there is this other spirit that has emerged on a mass scale that's happening literally at the same time as these riots. It's an amazing illustration of the two Frances that are emerging," he said.
The former banjoist for the band Mumford & Sons, Marshall returned to the Christianity of his youth after drifting from it throughout his 20s. During an interview with Glenn Beck in 2022, he explained that the suffering and darkness in his own life pressed him to return to Jesus Christ.
France has seen a surge in Christian baptisms in recent years, especially among young people. Adult baptisms in French Catholic churches have tripled over the past decade, and the country has recorded more than 21,380 total adolescent and adult baptisms this year, according to data from the French Bishops' Conference.
Teenagers and young adults between 18 to 25 are reportedly driving much of the momentum as they embrace a "chosen" Christian faith amid their search for meaning, stability and community in a society that has largely ceased to be Christian, Vatican News reports.
"I see this decision [to convert] as part of a broader sociological trend. Today the Church in France is experiencing something very unique: it is transitioning from a Christianity that was once inherited to a Christianity that is chosen," a 24-year-old Frenchman named Robin, who was baptized in 2023, told the outlet last month.
"In the aftermath of World War II, there was a widespread effort in our society to build a society without God — a society indifferent to God. It's clear that young people aren't any happier today. On the contrary, they're even unhappier than before. And I'm part of that generation and that youth that thirsts for God," he added.
The French Bishops' Conference have condemned what they described as the "unacceptable violence" that gripped the country last weekend, writing: "We urge everyone not to be drawn into the spiral of this deadly violence: our country deserves better."
Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Post. Send news tips to jon.brown@christianpost.com
