Pope Leo says support for death penalty is ‘not pro-life,’ defends awarding pro-abortion Durbin– www.lifesitenews.com
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(LifeSiteNews) — Pope Leo XIV did not rebuke Cardinal Blase Cupich for honoring pro-abortion Senator Dick Durbin with a lifetime achievement award, and said that those who support the death penalty are “not really pro-life.”
On September 30, a journalist from EWTN asked Leo what he thinks about Illinois Sen. Durbin being set to receive an award from Cupich despite his support for abortion.
Here’s the video of the Pope responding to Card. Cupich granting Sen. Richard Durbin a church honor. 10 U.S. bishops have condemned the honor, given Durbin’s record on abortion. Pope Leo does not seem disturbed by the honor. Video: EWTN. pic.twitter.com/AzXIr34kR6
— Raymond Arroyo (@RaymondArroyo) September 30, 2025
Leo gave a long-winded answer that appeared to imply he did not have a problem with Durbin receiving the award.
“I think that it is very important to look at the overall work that a senator has done during … 40 years of service in the United States Senate,” he stated. “I understand the difficulty and the tensions but I think, as I myself have spoken to in the past, it is important to look at many issues that are related to what is the teaching of the Church.”
“Someone who says I’m against abortion but says I’m in favor of the death penalty is not really pro-life,” the Pope said. “Someone who says I’m against abortion but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States, I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”
“So, they are very complex issues, I don’t know if anyone has all the truth on them, but I would ask first and foremost that there would be greater respect for one another and that we search together both as humans beings, in that case as American citizens or citizens of the state of Illinois, as well as Catholics to say we really need to look closely at all these ethical issues and to find the way forward as Church.”