Pope Leo XIV Blasts Illinois for Legalizing Assisted Suicide

Pope Leo XIV, the first American pontiff in the Catholic Church’s history, is speaking out forcefully after his home state of Illinois legalized assisted suicide, calling the move “very disappointing” and a direct blow to the sanctity of life.

Speaking outside Rome, Pope Leo confirmed that he personally urged Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker not to sign the bill, which allows terminally ill patients to obtain life-ending drugs under what is now called the Medical Aid in Dying Act, or “Deb’s Law.” The legislation takes effect in September 2026.

“I am very disappointed about that,” Leo said plainly. “God became human like us to show us what it means really to live human life… from conception to natural death.”

Despite pressure from the Vatican, Cardinal Blase Cupich, and the state’s six Catholic dioceses, Pritzker ignored the moral appeals and went forward with the legislation, claiming it was necessary to “avoid unnecessary pain and suffering.”

But Pope Leo isn’t buying it. “I would invite all people, especially in these Christmas days, to reflect upon the nature of human life, the goodness of human life,” the pope said, framing the law as a complete rejection of what Christmas represents: the dignity of life, no matter how fragile.

The law, named after Deb Robertson, a terminally ill woman who advocated for physician-assisted suicide, will make Illinois the 12th jurisdiction in America to legalize the practice. Seven more states are considering similar laws, according to the pro-euthanasia group Death with Dignity.

But for Catholics and millions of others who still believe life is sacred this trend is nothing short of alarming.

“This law puts Illinois on a dangerous and heartbreaking path,” the state’s bishops wrote in a joint statement.

This is more than a debate over medicine. This is about a culture that increasingly chooses convenience over compassion, control over care, and death over dignity.

Assisted suicide is marketed as mercy, but in practice, it sends a devastating message that some lives are no longer worth living. That when suffering becomes inconvenient, the answer is not support, but surrender. And now Illinois, once a bastion of Catholic culture and Christian morality, is paving the road for state-sanctioned death.

Pope Leo’s comments are a wake-up call not just to Catholics, but to all Americans watching their moral institutions buckle under the weight of progressive ideology.

“Respect for life must grow in all moments of human existence,” he said. That used to be a basic principle. Now, it’s seen as controversial.

At a time when our society is already saturated with despair, isolation, and brokenness, the answer isn’t to legalize more ways to die. It’s to fight for the value of every life, no matter how vulnerable.

Illinois had the chance to draw a line. Instead, Gov. Pritzker chose to cross it.

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