Pope Francis weighed in on the 2024 U.S. presidential election Friday on the return flight to Rome following his 12-day Apostolic Journey to Asia and Oceania, according to Vatican News.
The pope, who also answered reporters’ questions on the conflict in Gaza and potential openness with China, fielded a question from CBS News regarding the choice facing American Catholics in the November election, according to the Vatican News.
CBS News’s Anna Matranga asked questions about issues American Catholics face — including immigration and abortion — as they related to statements the pope made during his Sept. 2 to Sept. 13 trip, the longest of his pontificate, Vatican News reported.
Aboard the flight from Singapore, Pope Francis spoke to journalists about the civilian tragedy of the war in Gaza and the need for Americans to vote according to their conscience, and calls China a promise and hope for the Church.https://t.co/BukfvhCytw
— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) September 13, 2024
Matranga started by saying Pope Francis had praised high birth rates in Timor-Leste and defended migrant workers in Singapore, according to Vatican News.
“With the U.S. elections coming up, what advice would you give a Catholic voter faced with a candidate who supports ending a pregnancy and another who wants to deport 11 million migrants?” Matranga asked the pontiff.
Since he’s not American, the pope responded, he won’t vote, but both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump — whom he referenced without naming — “are against life,” the outlet reported.
“Failing to care for migrants is a sin, a sin against life and humanity,” the pope said, before also asserting abortion “is murder; it is murder!”
“Migration is a right, and it was already present in Sacred Scripture and in the Old Testament. The stranger, the orphan, and the widow — do not forget this,” the pope continued, according to Vatican News.
“Having an abortion is killing a human being,” the Pope said. “The Church is not closed-minded because it forbids abortion; the Church forbids abortion because it kills.”
Matranga then asked, “In your opinion, Your Holiness, are there circumstances in which it is morally permissible to vote for a candidate who is in favor of abortion?” Vatican News reported.
The pope responded political morality dictates that a citizen must vote, and that requires one to “choose the lesser evil,” according to Vatican News. (RELATED: ‘Only Catholic Option’: Faith Leaders Descend On Mar-A-Lago To Rally Support, Pray For Trump As Campaign Heats Up)
“Which is the lesser evil? That lady or that gentleman?” the pope asked. “I don’t know; each person must think and decide according to their own conscience.”
