The Pope rejects the "national priority" of the PP and Vox and amends the rearmament of Europe

MadridFor the first time in history, the Pope has delivered a speech to Congress. In an auditorium dressed up for the occasion and on a visit that he wanted to serve as a "gesture of closeness" towards Spain, Leo XIV has once again fully entered the Spanish political debate to fundamentally amend the postulates of the far-right regarding immigration. He has once again referred to the "tragic migratory drama" and has reproached the "national priority" that the PP and Vox have recently agreed upon in the autonomous communities. "Where a person is discriminated against based on their national, ethnic, religious, or linguistic origin, the universal principle of the equal dignity of all human beings is gravely violated," he proclaimed. "The situation of migrants and refugees demands a response that looks at people," he added. Likewise, he has posed a "double demand of social justice" with immigrants: they must be offered "safe and legal pathways," "respectful reception," and "real integration opportunities," and, in parallel, the "right to stay in their own land" must be promoted by working to ensure that "no one has to leave their home." Precisely on Thursday, the Pope will travel to the Canary Islands, which is the final destination of Europe's most dangerous migratory route.

From Congress, among others, the presidents of the PP and Vox, Alberto Núñez Feijóo and Santiago Abascal, listened to him, who acted as if they heard nothing regarding the Pope's positions against restrictions on immigrants' rights. The far-right leader does not feel alluded to by Leo XIV's words, believes there is "no contradiction," and asks to "distinguish" between speeches and "practical politics." The leader of the opposition subscribes to the speech "from A to Z," and the spokesperson for the Popular Party, Borja Sémper, maintains that the pontiff's speech is compatible with their pacts with Vox: "We believe that migrants deserve to be treated with dignity," he verbalized. For his part, the spokesperson for the PSOE in Congress, Patxi López, has urged the right to put humanism at the center of politics.

"From conception to natural sunset"The Pope's speech also had references to the international context, hit by the wars in Ukraine, Iran, and Palestine. "It is worrying that, in various parts of the world, and also in Europe, rearmament is once again presented as an almost inevitable response to the fragility of the international scene," lamented Leo XIV, who called for "diplomatic courage" to achieve peace away from weapons and appealed to "resolve controversies through the peaceful paths offered by international law." "Weapons can impose a temporary silence, but they will never be able to build an authentic and lasting peace," he stated. And, as he did after landing in Madrid, he set homework for the political class to avoid polarization: "Political plurality should not degenerate into permanent disqualification of the adversary".

"From conception to natural sunset"

Leo XIV has also lashed out against the right to abortion and euthanasia, two of the pillars of Pedro Sánchez's roadmap from the last legislature. In fact, the lower house is currently processing a reform of the Constitution promoted by Moncloa to protect abortion. "All human life must be recognized and safeguarded from conception to its natural end, in every circumstance of its existence," the Pope proclaimed from the Congress's speaker's platform. "When this certainty is obscured, the most vulnerable are the first victims. The moral greatness of a nation is manifested in its capacity to accompany, protect, and love those lives that experience greater fragility," he added. "Can a community that leaves the unborn child in the shadows be called fully just?" he asked. Upon leaving, Minister Félix Bolaños replied that the Spanish government "respects all positions of the Catholic Church" and – indeed – said that the Pope's speech had been "absolutely concordant and coherent" with the Moncloa's postulates.

Francina Armengol opts for "union" and "agreement"

The president of Congress, Francina Armengol, also took the floor, who defended that "strength rests on unity and agreement" and appealed for "understanding" between institutions and cultures as something "essential to face the great challenges". She also alluded to the international context: "There is no other choice but to gather around the essential and reformulate measures that commit us to the configuration of a more just world".

Meeting with Pedro Sánchez

Before visiting Congress, the Pope met for half an hour with Pedro Sánchez at the Apostolic Nunciature. The Spanish president, who was greeted with shouts of "chorizo" by a group of citizens waiting for him at the door, presented him with a Spanish olive bonsai as a representation of "the perfect balance between tradition and innovation" and "between respect for historical roots and the adoption of technological vanguard" and as a "universal symbol of peace, dialogue, and understanding".