'You Are Not a Burden': Pope Leo Challenges France's Assisted-Dying Law at Lourdes

Pope Leo XIV told sick and disabled pilgrims at Lourdes on Sunday that they are 'not a burden', less than six weeks after France's assisted-dying law came into force. He also warned that 'what is legal is not necessarily moral'.

While he did not name France's new legislation, he made the remarks in a country that has just introduced a legal framework allowing eligible adults with serious and incurable, life-threatening conditions to request assistance to die, subject to specific conditions.

The Pope made the comments during a meeting with patients, carers and healthcare workers at the Accueil Notre-Dame, a facility at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes.

The centre hosts sick and frail pilgrims from around the world and is run by about 50 employees, together with consecrated men and women and hundreds of volunteers.

A Direct Message to Patients in Pain

Speaking to those facing serious illness, Pope Leo acknowledged that despair can set in. 'I know that for some of you, because of particular illnesses and, at times, terrible pain, your horizon may appear dark, uncertain and without hope,' he said.

'But no human law should ever make you lose the certainty of your dignity,' he continued. He urged his audience to 'reject the temptation to cause death under the guise of false compassion', adding that 'it is impossible to regard causing death as something normal'. He also said: 'Our dignity cannot be measured or debated.'

Turning to the patients, he said: 'Dear brothers and sisters who are sick, I want to tell you that you are not a burden. You are the beating heart of our humanity and a precious treasure for the Church.'

Pope Leo's Warning to Healthcare Workers

The Pope appealed to 'the entire healthcare community' to remember that its vocation is 'to care for a suffering person, not to eliminate that person'. He urged health workers to be 'passionate servants of life' and encouraged the development of palliative care and research.

He also repeated a warning he first gave in June to members of the Jérôme Lejeune Foundation. Referring to 'laboratory algorithms', he said no one has the right to decide the life of an embryo or elderly person and warned that medicine must never become 'the servant of programmed death'.

France's Assisted-Dying Law

France enacted Law No. 2026-794 on 18 August, with its provisions taking effect on 20 August. The law creates a legal framework for assisted dying for eligible adults under specified conditions; it does not give every terminally ill adult an automatic right to assistance.

The legislation was originally introduced by Olivier Falorni in 2025 and was ultimately adopted by the National Assembly on 15 July. The Constitutional Council reviewed the legislation before its promulgation in August.

UK MPs Reject Assisted-Dying Bill

The Pope's words also follow a different outcome across the Channel. On 11 September, MPs voted 286 to 270 against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill at second reading. The Bill, sponsored by Labour MP Lauren Edwards, would have allowed eligible terminally ill adults to request assistance to end their lives, subject to safeguards.

With France's law now in force, the remarks carry particular significance for doctors, nurses and carers involved in end-of-life care. For Catholic healthcare workers in France, they reinforce the Church's position as the new legal framework begins to take effect, while also putting palliative care at the centre of the Church's response.

The Pope's intervention comes as European countries continue to debate how the law should address assisted dying and end-of-life care. France has introduced a legal framework for assisted dying, while MPs in the House of Commons have rejected an assisted-dying Bill within the same summer.