Pope Leo XIV delivered a sharp rebuke of medically assisted dying during a Sunday Mass at Lourdes, condemning the practice as an immoral form of "false compassion" as his high-profile tour of France drew hundreds of thousands of believers.
Massive Crowds Gather as Pope Leo XIV Rebukes Assisted Dying in France
Speaking before an estimated 150,000 people on the prairie next to the sanctuary’s main basilica, the American pope addressed an end-of-life debate that has roiled French politics for years and recently culminated in legislation allowing adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication.
The address marked a central theme of the pontiff’s third day in France, a nation that was once staunchly Catholic but remains officially secular. His itinerary has drawn massive numbers, including an estimated 800,000 attendees at an open-air Mass on Paris’ iconic Place de la Concorde.
The Sanctuary at Lourdes and the Sanctity of Suffering
During his time at Lourdes—a shrine near the Spanish border that draws millions of pilgrims annually, particularly sick and disabled believers seeking healing from its famed spring water—Leo visited a care center for patients on the sanctuary grounds. He offered encouragement to individuals enduring severe physical suffering, asserting they possess an inherent dignity that no law or automated algorithm can dismantle.
Since arriving in the country, the pope has repeatedly emphasized Catholic doctrine requiring that all human life be protected from conception until natural death—a stance that translates into firm opposition against abortion, euthanasia, and medically assisted dying.
Private Meetings With Survivors Amid Ongoing Clergy Abuse Reckoning
Beyond end-of-life ethics, the pope’s visit to Lourdes intersected with the French Catholic Church’s ongoing reckoning with sexual abuse. The sanctuary has increasingly served as a site of healing for survivors of clergy abuse.
On Sunday, Leo met privately with seven survivors, including one individual who was abused as an adult. Participants in the two-hour meeting described the exchange as sincere and emotional.
"There was something sincere with him. Every word was chosen; every word had a meaning. There were many emotions," survivor Jérôme Guillement told a local French television station, noting discussions centered on abuse prevention at all institutional levels.
Olivier Mardi, another survivor who attended the closed-door gathering, told France’s LCI news channel that the pontiff responded constructively to concrete proposals. "He reacted well to our very concrete proposals … He said that we must reopen hope, and it takes seriousness to seize it," Mardi said.
Institutional Crisis, Compensation, and Open Letter Pressures
The French church has faced intense scrutiny following an independent report released in 2021, which estimated that approximately 330,000 children had been abused over a 70-year span by roughly 3,000 priests and church employees. In response to the crisis, French bishops established an independent compensation system that has recommended payouts exceeding 20 million euros ($22.7 million).
Earlier Sunday, during a meeting with French bishops, Leo praised their handling of victims and urged them to maintain their efforts. However, he also acknowledged that the scandal has severely impacted priestly vocations, noting that the priesthood is now frequently viewed with suspicion.
"For priestly vocations to flourish, the priest must be welcomed, accepted, and loved," Leo told the bishops.
The papal meetings occurred against the backdrop of an open letter published Sunday in the French newspaper Libération by a group of abuse survivors. The letter urged the pontiff to explicitly acknowledge institutional responsibility and criticized what signatories described as an inherent conflict of interest in bishops acting simultaneously as spiritual leaders for their clergy and judges in disciplinary proceedings.
"The Church must relinquish its position as both judge and party to the proceedings," the survivors wrote.
