Pope Leo condemns abortion and surrogacy as grave violations of human dignity in his inaugural major address at the Vatican, decrying them as manifestations of “deceptive forms of compassion” while urging global support for families and vulnerable lives amid broader calls for justice and mercy.
The pontiff, framing his remarks within a reflection on humanity’s divine calling to love, declared that abortion “cuts short a growing life and refuses to welcome the gift of life,” expressing alarm over international initiatives to fund cross-border access to the procedure.
“The Holy See expresses deep concern about projects aimed at financing cross-border mobility for the purpose of accessing the so-called right to safe abortion,” Leo said, adding that it was “deplorable that public resources are allocated to suppress life rather than being invested to support mothers and families.”
He emphasized: “The primary objective must remain the protection of every unborn child and the effective and concrete support of every woman so that she is able to welcome life.”
Turning to surrogacy, the Pope condemned it as exploitative, stating: “By transforming gestation into a negotiable service, this violates the dignity both of the child, who is reduced to a product, and of the mother, exploiting her body and the generative process and distorting the original relational calling of the family.”
Leo also denounced euthanasia as “deceptive forms of compassion,” advocating instead for investments in palliative care and genuine solidarity with the suffering.
The speech, which touched on prisoners’ rights, the abolition of the death penalty — described as “a measure that destroys all hope of forgiveness and renewal” — and support for migrants, highlighted pressures on the family institution, including neglect by global systems and phenomena like domestic violence.
“Human beings are created in the image and likeness of God who by calling them into existence out of love has at the same time called them to love,” the Pope said, underscoring the family’s role in this divine imperative.
The address sets a firm tone for Leo’s papacy on divisive ethical issues, signaling a robust stance against practices he views as undermining life’s sanctity in an increasingly polarized world.
