Pope Leo XIV Reaffirms Church Opposition to Abortion, Euthanasia, and Surrogacy

Pope Leo XIV, the Peruvian-born American pontiff Robert Prevost, firmly restated the Catholic Church's opposition to abortion, euthanasia, and surrogacy in his address to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See on Friday. The traditional New Year audience, held in the Aula delle Benedizioni after the close of his first consistory of cardinals and the 2025 Jubilee Year, included Andorra's ambassador Carles Álvarez.

The Pope expressed deep concern over policies funding cross-border travel to access what some call a "safe abortion right," stating the Vatican "categorically rejects any practice that denies or exploits the origin of life and its development." He called it deplorable to allocate public resources to end lives rather than support mothers and families, stressing protection for unborn children and practical aid for women embracing motherhood.

Leo XIV condemned surrogacy for commodifying gestation, exploiting women's bodies, reducing children to products, and distorting the family's relational foundation. He urged protections for vulnerable people—including the elderly, the sick, those with addictions, and the isolated—through palliative care and genuine solidarity, rejecting euthanasia as false compassion.

Defending conscientious objection, the Pope described it as fidelity to personal moral convictions, not rebellion, enabling doctors to refuse involvement in abortions or euthanasia. He warned that even self-described democratic states are curtailing this freedom, arguing true liberty safeguards diverse consciences against authoritarianism.

The pontiff highlighted the family, formed by the exclusive union of man and woman, as the primary sphere for nurturing life and love. He linked its institutional marginalization to rising fragility, domestic violence, and sharp birth rate drops in affected countries.

On international issues, Leo XIV decried civilian involvement in military operations and attacks on hospitals, energy infrastructure, homes, and essential sites as grave violations of humanitarian law. States must prioritize these rules over strategic goals to limit war's toll and enable rebuilding.

Local outlets noted the speech's implications for Andorra, where surrogacy has faced indirect regulation without the episcopal co-prince's signature, and abortion decriminalization talks—advanced under Pope Francis—now appear stalled. The episcopal co-prince, Josep-Lluís Serrano Pentinat, echoed pro-life calls in November.

Reflecting on the Jubilee, which drew millions amid Pope Francis's death and funeral, Leo XIV thanked Italian authorities and security forces. Citing St Augustine on historical distortions, excessive nationalism, and flawed leadership, he invoked Francis's notion of a "change of era." He also referenced invitations from Turkey and Lebanon, sites of his first major foreign trip.