In a New Year’s address to diplomats accredited to the Vatican, the 87-year-old pope said that surrogacy “violates the dignity of the woman and the child.”
In his speech, the head of the Church called for an end to conflicts in the world and stated: “The path to peace requires respect for human life. It begins with the life of the unborn child in the mother’s womb, which must not be transformed into an object of trade.
“In this sense I consider so-called surrogacy unacceptable, which seriously violates the dignity of the woman and the child. A child is always a gift, never the object of a commercial transaction,” the Pope said.
At the beginning of June, Francis had called surrogacy “inhumane”.
“Altruistic” surrogacy, in which no payment is made to give birth to another, except for the costs of the pregnancy, is legal in several countries, including Belgium, the Netherlands, Britain, Canada, Brazil and Colombia.
Several US states also allow paid surrogacy.
2024-01-08 19:00:00
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