Pope Leo XIV Condemns Assisted Dying as ‘False Compassion’ and Meets with Clergy Abuse Survivors

Pope Leo XIV condemned the legalization of medically assisted death as immoral “false compassion” during a visit to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France. The visit occurred on the third day of his trip to France, where he reaffirmed Catholic teaching on the sanctity of life. This stance was articulated amid an ongoing debate regarding end-of-life legislation in his native United States and other countries.

The issue of assisted dying has roiled French politics for years, culminating in the recent approval of legislation allowing adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication. France’s National Assembly enshrined abortion as a constitutional right in 2024 and recently gave final approval to its end-of-life bill. The Pope’s messaging against abortion and assisted dying has been a prominent feature of his visit to France, a country described as once staunchly Catholic and officially secular.

On Sunday, Pope Leo XIV met with seven survivors of clergy sexual abuse, a regular appointment for popes on foreign visits. The stated aim of such meetings is to atone for the Catholic Church’s failure to protect its youngest and most vulnerable members from predator priests. Survivor Jean-Marie Delbos, who joined four others at a subsequent press conference, described the encounter as extraordinary. Delbos stated that the Pope listened and was informed of their cases, noting, “I never thought I would have a pope before me.”

The Pope celebrated Mass before some 150,000 people, many of whom were in wheelchairs, on the prairie next to Lourdes’ main basilica. He subsequently visited a care center for sick people on the sanctuary’s grounds. During his address, he sought to encourage those living in “terrible pain,” asserting that they possess inherent dignity that no law or algorithm can “eliminate.” He stated, “On the contrary, it is precisely in the name of this inalienable dignity of the human person that we must reject the temptation to cause death under the guise of false compassion.”

Catholic teaching holds that all human life must be protected and defended from conception until natural death, resulting in firm opposition to abortion, euthanasia, and medically assisted dying. The Pope emphasized to the crowd that “What is legal is not necessarily moral,” a statement that received applause. His visit to France has been marked by large crowds, including 800,000 attendees at his Mass on Paris’ Place de la Concorde.

The moral imperative to protect the vulnerable and uphold truth in the face of societal shifts resonates with the call to seek justice and mercy, as reflected in Micah 6:8. In the context of institutional accountability, the commitment to listening to victims and acknowledging past failures aligns with the biblical mandate for righteousness and care for the oppressed, as seen in Proverbs 31:8-9. These principles underscore the necessity of distinguishing legal permission from moral obligation in matters of life and death.

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