Pope Francis called surrogacy “deplorable” and called for a global ban on the exploitative practice of “so-called surrogate motherhood” in a speech to all of the world’s ambassadors to the Vatican on Monday.
“The path to peace calls for respect for life, for every human life, starting with the life of the unborn child in the mother’s womb, which cannot be suppressed or turned into an object of trafficking,” Pope Francis said Jan. 8.
“In this regard, I deem deplorable the practice of so-called surrogate motherhood, which represents a grave violation of the dignity of the woman and the child, based on the exploitation of situations of the mother’s material needs. A child is always a gift and never the basis of a commercial contract.”
The Pope then called on the international community to prohibit the practice of surrogacy universally.
“At every moment of its existence, human life must be preserved and defended; yet I note with regret, especially in the West, the continued spread of a culture of death, which in the name of a false compassion discards children, the elderly and the sick,” he added.
Pope Francis’ strong condemnation of surrogacy came during his annual foreign policy speech to all of the ambassadors accredited to the Holy See.
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In the 45-minute speech in the Vatican’s gilded Hall of Blessings, the Pope underlined the importance that “humanitarian law” is upheld by the international community to “ensure the defense of human dignity in situations of warfare.”
“Modern wars no longer take place only on clearly defined battlefields, nor do they involve soldiers alone,” he said.
“In a context where it appears that the distinction between military and civil objectives is no longer respected, there is no conflict that does not end up in some way indiscriminately striking the civilian population. The events in Ukraine and Gaza are clear proof of this.”
The Pope’s annual speech to diplomats has been called his “state of the world” address because it is one of a handful of times that the pope addresses global crises and specific conflicts happening around the world all at once.
Notably, China was only mentioned in relation to the earthquake last month, which Pope Francis listed among “disasters that human beings cannot control.” The United States was also referenced only once by name during the pope’s appeal for migrants, in which he said that people risk their lives along dangerous routes journeying “through the north of Mexico to the border with the United States.”
The Holy See has full diplomatic relations with 184 states, as well as the European Union and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. In the city of Rome, there are 91 diplomatic missions accredited to the Holy See.
Last year, the Holy See established diplomatic relations with the country of Oman, the oldest independent state in the Arab world. Pope Francis also highlighted in his speech the diplomatic developments with Vietnam, where the Vatican sent an appointed papal representative for the first time last year.