The Pope has asked this Monday, January 8 the “universal ban” on surrogacyduring his speech before the ambassadors accredited to the Holy See.

For Francis, the path to peace requires respect for life “beginning with that of the unborn child, who It cannot be deleted or converted into a commercial product“. In this framework, he deplored “the practice of so-called surrogacy” which “seriously offends the dignity of women and children” and is based on “the exploitation of the mother’s situation of material need.”

“A child is always a gift and never the object of a contract“, he stated. For all these reasons, he has asked that the international community commit to “universally prohibiting this practice.”

Likewise, it has shown his repudiation of the so-called “gender ideology” which has been considered part of the “cultural colonizations” of modernity.

For Francisco, there is “new rightsnot entirely compatible with those originally defined and not always acceptable”, which have given rise to “ideological colonizations“, among which “gender theory” occupies a central place, which is “extremely dangerous because erases the differences in its claim to make everyone equal“.

On the other hand, he referred to the “educational challenge” of the ethical use of new technologies among young people, since “they can easily become instruments of division or spreading of lieslike the so-called ‘fake news’, but they are also a means of encounter, mutual exchange and an important vehicle for peace.”

And more specifically, he has asked for “careful reflection at all levels, national and international, political and social, so that the development of artificial intelligence – to which he dedicates the annual Message of the World Day of Peace – remains at the service of man, promoting and not hindering” interpersonal relationships, a healthy spirit of brotherhood and critical thinking capable of discernment.

“The Mediterranean should rather be a laboratory of peace”

In this sense, the relevance of the two Diplomatic Conferences of the World Intellectual Property Organization, which will take place in 2024 and in which the Holy See will participate as a Member State, has been highlighted.

“Special attention must also be paid to the protection of the human genetic heritagepreventing practices contrary to human dignity, such as the patenting of human biological material and the cloning of human beings,” he urged.

On the other hand, the Pontiff has shown his “satisfaction” with the commitment of the European Union to “seek a common solution” through the adoption of the new Pact on Migration and Asylum” – highly criticized by NGOs -, although it has pointed out some of its limitations, especially with regard to “the recognition of the right of asylum and the danger of arbitrary detention.”

Francisco recalled that in migratory journeys, people put their lives at risk due to “dangerous routes”, such as in the Sahara desert, in the Darién jungle, on the border between Colombia and Panama; in Central America, in northern Mexico, on the border with the United States “and, above all, in the Mediterranean Sea.”

“The Mediterranean should rather be a laboratory of peacea ‘place where different countries and realities meet on the basis of the common humanity that we all share'”, he reiterated to specify, as he did on his trip to Marseille, that this does not mean that migration has to be regulated to “welcome , promote, accompany and integrate” migrants.