Pope Leo XIV, in France, says protection of life a duty for everyone

PARIS – Pope Leo XIV, in his first speech during a four-day visit to France, lamented the use of science and technology for profit instead of moral and ethical human progress and said that everyone is responsible for the protection of life.

Addressing French President Emmanuel Macron and other government members at the Élysée Palace, the head of state’s official residence, on Sept. 25, the pontiff said he was concerned “by those trends in society that risk turning science and technology into profit-driven ventures promoting genetic manipulation, surrogacy, the trade in human organs or the possibility of arranging one’s own death.”

“Let us not forget that mutual respect and the protection of every human life is a duty incumbent upon each and every one of us,” he said.

End-of-life questions are among the most sensitive issues the pope is expected to address while in France Sept. 25-28. France legalized assisted suicide and euthanasia this summer , becoming the fifth European country to do so after Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Spain. In addition, Switzerland and Austria permit assisted suicide.

Euthanasia is the intentional ending of a person’s life to relieve…