Pope uses Spain speech to warn of global ‘spiritual and cultural crisis’

Pope Leo XIV at the Spanish parliament in Madrid. Photograph: Vatican Pool/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Pope Leo XIV at the Spanish parliament in Madrid. Photograph: Vatican Pool/Getty Images Pope uses Spain speech to warn of global ‘spiritual and cultural crisis’ Addressing lawmakers, Leo XIV also highlights migration at a time when Madrid is bucking European trends Pope Leo XIV has used a landmark address to the Spanish parliament to warn the world is undergoing “a deep spiritual and cultural crisis” and to urge the international community to tackle the causes and consequences of what he termed “the tragic drama of migration”. In a wide-ranging speech delivered to lawmakers in Madrid, the pontiff also touched on conflict, artificial intelligence , the climate emergency, and the issues of abortion and euthanasia. “The world is undergoing a deep spiritual and cultural crisis, which manifests itself in multiple forms of violence, polarisation and mutual mistrust,” he said. “Given this context, peace is not just a political aspiration but a true moral need.” The pope told the politicians on Monday that the search for peace would require “diplomatic courage, ethical responsibility” and a determination to solve problems using international law rather than resorting to “the temporary silence” achieved by weapons. “That is why it is concerning that in various parts of the world – including Europe – rearmament is once again being presented as an almost inevitable response to the fragility of the international landscape,” the pontiff added. “True security, on the other hand, stems from justice, patient dialogue, respect for international law, and a policy capable of prioritising the lives of people over the interests that profit from war.” Much of his speech, the first such address by a pope to the Spanish parliament, was devoted to migration. Leo intends to highlight the issue on his week-long visit to Spain , which will include meetings in the Canaries with people who have taken the perilous Atlantic route from Africa to Europe . The pontiff, the first US pope, has already clashed with the Trump administration over its war in Iran and over treatment of migrants. His presence in Spain comes at a time when the country’s socialist-led government is bucking European trends by regularising the status of more than 500,000 undocumented migrants and asylum seekers. Santiago Abascal, the leader of Spain’s far-right Vox party, which last year floated the idea of deporting up to 8 million people of foreign origin including the children of immigrants, has decried the regularisation scheme as part of a government plan to accelerate an immigrant “invasion”. Vox is currently seeking to enact a “national priority” policy that favours Spaniards over foreign-born people when it comes to housing and benefits in the regions where it governs in coalition with the conservative People’s party. Leo told Spanish MPs and senators that countries had a moral duty to acce