This Monday, June 8, in front of the deputies and senators gathered at the Madrid Congress, Leo XIV placed human dignity at the center of his reflection. For the Pope, it constitutes the foundation of any just society and must inspire the action of political leaders beyond the electoral alternations and majorities of the moment. From the first minutes of his intervention, the sovereign pontiff recalled that “Human dignity precedes any concession by the State and cannot be subordinated to changing social consensuses or to the fluctuations of the majorities of the moment.”
This conviction led him to address one of the central questions of his speech: the defense of human life. In a particularly notable passage, Leo XIV declared that “ the defense of human life is neither a partial question nor a confessional interest: it is an objective of civilization.” The pope then recalled the constant position of the Church on the protection of all human life: “All human life must be recognized and protected from its conception to its natural end, in every circumstance of its existence. HAS”
Referring to the most vulnerable people, he also asked this question: “Can we consider as fully just a community that relegates to the shadows the unborn child, the elderly, the sick, the one who suffers in silence or the one who is entirely dependent on the care of others? HAS” This reflection extended into an analysis of the role of the law. Refusing a purely procedural vision of democracy, Leo XIV affirmed that all legislation must remain in the service of the human person: “A law does not achieve its true greatness simply by having been adopted according to the required forms; she achieves it when she can be confronted with the dignity of the human person and emerge from this examination without blushing.” at-il déclaré.
The sovereign pontiff also devoted several passages to family and education. Presented as “the first school of humanity”, the family appears in his speech as the place where the first forms of solidarity and responsibility are transmitted. He also recalled the “primary and inalienable right” parents to choose the education of their children in accordance with their convictions. Religious freedom constituted another major axis of his intervention. While recalling the distinction between the political order and the religious order, Leo XIV stressed that faith could not be excluded from the public space.
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“Faith does not claim to impose itself by privileges or by constraint; However, neither can it be relegated to silence as if it were of no importance to public life.” he said. The pope also devoted several passages to the spiritual and cultural roots that shaped Europe. “Modern freedom was prepared by a long education of conscience deeply marked by the Christian tradition,” he declared. Further, he recalled that this heritage had taught the European peoples “that the law must serve the good, that justice places limits on force, that power needs legitimacy, that the poor belong fully to the community” and that “Human life can never be treated as a commodity.”
In this context, Leo XIV also defended the sacramental secret of confession, which he presented as relating to religious freedom and freedom of conscience. Finally, the sovereign pontiff dedicated several developments to international peace. In a context marked by armed conflicts and geopolitical tensions, he warned against certain developments observed in Europe and around the world. “It is worrying that in various regions of the world, and also in Europe, rearmament is once again being presented as an almost inevitable response.”he declared, before adding that “Weapons can impose temporary silence; but they will never be able to build authentic and lasting peace.”
In conclusion, Leo XIV launched a call for a culture of dialogue capable of overcoming political divisions. Summarizing the spirit of his intervention in a particularly remarkable formula, he asserted: “Firmness does not require contempt; divergence does not authorize humiliation. HAS” An invitation to place the dignity of the human person at the heart of public life.
The entire speech of Pope Leo XIV to the members of the Spanish Parliament
TC translation
“Congress of Deputies, Madrid, Monday June 8, 2026
Mr President of the Government,
Madame la Présidente du Congrès des députés,
Mr. President of the Senate,
Mr President of the Constitutional Court,
Madam President of the Supreme Court and the General Council of the Judicial Power,
Ladies and gentlemen deputies and senators,
I thank Madam President for her kind words as well as for the invitation that the Holy See received on the occasion of my trip to this country, as well as for the honor given to me to be welcomed in this historic Palace of the Congress of Deputies, an eminent place in the institutional, legal and democratic life of the Kingdom of Spain.
I present myself before you as Bishop of Rome and Pastor of the Catholic Church, aware that the mission entrusted to the successor of the Apostle Peter, as principle and foundation of the unity of bishops and the faithful, places the Holy See in a particular dialogue with the peoples and the faithful. States.
My presence among you is intended to be a gesture of proximity towards Spain, within the framework of mutual cooperation, as well as a word offered in the service of the human person. The Church “walks with humanity”, shares its hopes and its wounds, listens to the questions of each era and allows itself to be challenged by everything that concerns the existence of men and women today.
This is why, when it addresses public life, it does so with respect for the proper mission of institutions and the legitimate responsibility of those who have received the mandate to legislate. It recognizes the autonomy of earthly realities and the distinction between the ecclesial community and the political community. It is precisely from this awareness that she brings a reflection born from the desire to serve the common good and to recall what makes life in society truly human.
In this hemicycle a legal form is given to social coexistence. Here, differences are listened to, sorted out and, when possible, transformed into shared decisions. This is why, beyond the legitimate diversity of positions, every legislative task ends up encountering a decisive question: what conception of the human person inspires the laws, and what type of society do these laws build?
Faced with this question, Spain has a particularly rich memory. Its geographical and political identity has been woven through a history where faith and reason, art and law, tradition and thought have been able to meet in a fruitful way.
In its cathedrals and its universities, in its immortal literature, in its legal institutions and in the very soul of its people remains alive a heritage which shaped a way of living freedom, of practicing justice and of organizing common life.
From the universal pages of Don Quixote, where Cervantes proclaimed that “freedom is one of the most precious gifts that heaven has granted to men”, to the spiritual depth of Saint Teresa of Avila, through the great Spanish legal tradition and metaphysical concern of Unamuno, who recalled that man “does not resign himself to dying entirely”, Spain knew how to look at the human being as much more than a simple part of the social, economic or political order.
She recognized him as a creature open to the truth, endowed with freedom and animated by a thirst for eternity that no temporal reality can quench. In a word, as someone whose dignity precedes all utility and in whose service legislative action must be placed.
This is why, when we speak today of the human person, this memory naturally leads to Salamanca and the thought that matured there. The symbolic presence in this room of the Catholic Kings Isabella and Ferdinand refers to this moment when Spain found itself invested with historical responsibilities of universal significance. A few years later, Salamanca would assume with remarkable lucidity the moral and legal reflection required by this new situation.
In this university, five centuries ago, as new worlds and immense possibilities opened up in relations between peoples, certain masters understood that reason could not be invoked to legitimize what force or interest presented as expedient. They thus introduced into historical discernment the question of the irreducible value of every human being and the moral limits of power.
It must be recognized that society and even the Church were not always up to the task of intuitions which nevertheless found an echo in their own Christian tradition. But this question opened an intellectual and moral horizon which went well beyond its time.
The intuition of “totus orbis”, that of a human community larger than any particular power, made it possible to affirm the existence of legal and moral links between peoples. From Spain, the reflection of the School of Salamanca, and more particularly that of Brother Francisco de Vitoria as well as other Dominicans and Jesuits, contributed to forming a legal and moral conscience capable of recalling that all authority implies responsibility and that every human being must be recognized as a subject of rights and homework.
This aspiration continues to speak to us today: that dignity, justice and the common good be the measure of social relations, both at the national and international level.
This is one of the great heritages of Spain: having united historical action with the lucidity of moral reason. This contribution, born on the banks of the Tormes, went beyond classrooms and libraries to become an integral part of a broader consciousness, shared by the international community which continues to ask itself how to build peace on the recognition of the person rather than on the imposition of force.
This heritage also lives in these Cortes each time the legislator asks himself how to ensure that the possible is just, that the legal is truly human and that the will of the majority protects the goods that belong to all, while respecting what no majority can legitimately violate.
The question raised in Salamanca continues to accompany those who serve public life. Today, the new worlds that are opening up before us are no longer outlined on geographical maps: they unfold in technology, economics, biomedicine and the digital universe, where human power reaches ever more delicate areas of personal and social life.
Progress offers admirable possibilities, and we see it today particularly in the development of artificial intelligence and new technologies. As I recalled in my recent encyclical, technology is never neutral, because it takes on the face of those who design it, finance it, regulate it and use it.
This is why, faced with the transformations of our time, our discernment must focus on the place occupied by the human person in our decisions, as well as on the way in which the dignity of work, solidarity, social policy and the common good are posed today, in a new light.
This discernment begins with a fundamental affirmation: any truly just society is built on the recognition of the inviolable dignity of the human person. This dignity precedes any concession from the State and cannot be subordinated to changing social consensuses or to the fluctuations of the majorities of the moment.
It belongs to every human being simply by virtue of their existence and must, for this reason, guide any positive legal order. The Christian faith affirms this from Revelation; human reason can recognize it as a requirement inscribed in the very truth of man.
When this conviction remains alive, the law becomes a protection for all and a guarantee against the imposition of particular interests or agendas.
It is on this basis that it is up to me today to address a calm but firm word to those who bear the grave responsibility of legally organizing social coexistence.
This coexistence can be threatened by the culture of waste, as Pope Francis often reminded us. From this perspective, if life ceases to be recognized as a fundamental value, what future can our societies have?
Can we consider as fully just a community that relegates to the shadows the unborn child, the elderly, the sick, the one who suffers in silence or the one who is entirely dependent on the care of others?
The defense of human life is neither a secondary issue nor a denominational interest. It constitutes an objective of civilization.
All human life must be recognized and protected from its conception to its natural end, in every circumstance of its existence. When this certainty becomes obscured, the most vulnerable become the first victims and the law loses its deepest meaning: to serve and protect each person.
The moral greatness of a nation is manifested above all in its capacity to accompany, protect and love lives going through the greatest fragility. The common good is, in a way, “the social form of human dignity”. It does not consist of the simple addition of particular interests, but of the set of social conditions which allow people and groups to more fully achieve their perfection.
When the common good ceases to be a shared horizon, public action risks fragmenting into partial interests incapable of preserving what belongs to all.
In this context, the family takes on particular importance. It is the first human reality and the natural foundation of community. It is in the home that generations meet and a living memory is transmitted which ensures the internal continuity of society.
Where the family is supported, the spiritual and social stability of nations is strengthened. The family will always be the first school of humanity where we learn, before any other place, the elementary grammar of coexistence: welcoming life, caring for others, forgiving, serving and belonging to a community.
Educational institutions also occupy a decisive place in this mission. They allow new generations to learn to seek and love the truth, to question the meaning of life and the dignity of each person.
This is why many parents, wanting their children to learn to live with others, to develop critical thinking and to acquire solid values, place great hopes in them.
This collaboration must always respect the “primary and inalienable right” of parents to choose the type of education and training received by their children, in accordance with their moral, cultural and religious convictions.
The affirmation of human dignity cannot remain abstract when so many people are forced to leave everything in search of peace, security and a better future.
The migratory drama today calls into question the conscience of nations and the ethical foundations of the international order. Many men, women and children are forced, often in dramatic circumstances, to abandon their community, their loved ones, their history and their deepest ties.
This reality goes beyond any purely demographic or economic reading. It constitutes an eminently moral and legal question.
Where a person is discriminated against because of their national, ethnic, religious or linguistic origin, or because of their economic and social condition, the universal principle of the equal dignity of all human beings is seriously violated.
The situation of migrants and refugees requires a people-centered response, which addresses the causes of forced migration and goes beyond simple management of flows.
We must both offer safe and legal pathways, a respectful welcome and real possibilities for integration, while defending the right of everyone to remain in their own land, so that no one is forced to leave for lack of peace, security or dignified living conditions.
In recent years, ever more dangerous migration routes have revealed the considerable human cost of this too often ignored reality.
Many people remain prey to traffickers who exploit their desperation. It is necessary to strengthen prevention, rescue and assistance to victims within the framework of regional and international cooperation.
No nation can meet a challenge of this magnitude alone. A coordinated, united and effective response is essential.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The world is going through a profound spiritual and cultural crisis which manifests itself in multiple forms of violence, polarization and mutual distrust.
In this context, peace appears not only as a political aspiration, but as a true moral requirement.
It calls for public speech respectful of those who think differently, institutions serving the encounter, a historical memory oriented towards truth and reconciliation, as well as a social life capable of supporting civic friendship and mutual respect despite differences.
On the international level, peace requires diplomatic courage, ethical responsibility and a vision of the future based on respect for the identity of each people.
Any war constitutes, ultimately, a painful failure of the capacity to negotiate and of that common conscience of humanity which recognizes the bonds of justice between nations.
Weapons can impose temporary silence, but they can never build authentic and lasting peace.
This is why it is worrying to see the reappearance, in various regions of the world and even in Europe, of rearmament as an almost inevitable response to the fragility of the international situation.
True security is born from justice, patient dialogue, respect for international law and a policy that places the lives of people above interests profiting from war.
The development of artificial intelligence in the military field also requires rigorous ethical vigilance so that decisions concerning life and death are never abandoned to automatisms nor removed from the moral responsibility of the human person.
The international community is called to rediscover the irreplaceable value of dialogue as a patient path towards just and lasting agreements.
As the motto of the European Union reminds us, “In varietate concordia”, true unity does not standardize, but harmonizes diversity and makes cultural differences a source of mutual enrichment.
Within societies themselves, it is urgent to build a culture of reciprocity. Political plurality should never degenerate into permanent disqualification of the adversary.
Even conflict can become a path to peace when differences are tempered by listening and directed towards recognizing each person’s needs and aspirations.
Peace is not only a political or institutional reality. It is also born in consciences, when resentment, indifference and hatred give way to reconciliation.
This is why it is also constructed through language. Words can open paths or close them. They can illuminate reality or distort it to the point of making any encounter impossible.
Those who exercise public responsibilities therefore have a particular duty to “disarm language”. Firmness does not require contempt, and divergence does not permit humiliation.
From this respect for others also comes the duty to protect the space where convictions, conscience and the relationship with God mature.
Freedom of thought, conscience and religion constitutes a fundamental right which protects the most intimate domain of the person.
Authentic freedom recognizes the religious dimension of the human being, respects it and legally protects it.
In this context, the sacramental secret of confession takes on particular importance for the Catholic Church.
It is part of the broader framework of religious freedom, which guarantees believing communities their own space for life, organization and internal discipline.
Protecting it legally means preserving a sacred space of interior freedom in which the believer can open his soul to God without fear of external pressure.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to pause for a moment on certain images which adorn this Chamber.
The natural light which enters through the glass roof dominating this room can remind us that politics itself needs to recognize a measure which precedes and exceeds it.
The paintings representing the reception of the Gospel and the Decalogue also recall an essential truth: without confusing the political order and the religious order, they invite us to recognize that modern freedom was prepared by a long education of the conscience deeply marked by Christian tradition.
It is in this inner school that people learned that law must serve the good, that justice sets limits to force, that power needs legitimacy, that the poor belong fully to the community, that the stranger must be welcomed with respect for his dignity and that human life can never be treated like a commodity.
A law does not achieve its true greatness simply by having been adopted according to the required forms. It achieves it when it can be confronted with the dignity of the human person and emerge from this examination without blushing.
I therefore invite you to raise your eyes, not to distance yourself from reality, but to remember that every public decision affects concrete people, in particular those who have the least strength to make their voices heard.
Spain has a lot to offer on this path. It has a language that unites continents, a cultural, legal and spiritual tradition that has brought together faith and reason, law and conscience, unity and plurality.
May this noble nation never lose the memory of its roots nor the audacity to look to the future.
May Spain continue to be a land of meeting, culture, solidarity and hope.
And may his public life always know how to unite the firmness of convictions with the nobility of dialogue and the greatness of service.
May God grant peace to all the nations of the earth, harmony to families and serenity to consciences.
And that on the Kingdom of Spain, marked by the apostolic imprint of Saint James and by the maternal presence of the Virgin of the Pillar, days of prosperity, justice and lasting peace descend.
Thank you very much.”
Source Vatican
