By Joshua McElwee
VATICAN CITY, July 3 (Reuters) – Pope Leo praised the United States’ history of welcoming immigrants in his first major address to his home country on Friday, urging in a video appearance that Americans live up to the ideals in the Declaration of Independence.
The U.S. pope, who has criticized President Donald Trump’s immigration policies as “inhuman,” said the word “America” had become a “byword for freedom” across the world because of the way the country welcomed immigrants.
In a speech he gave live from the Vatican to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia as he received the Center’s Liberty Medal, Leo said he hoped that ideals of “unity, justice and peace” held by the Founding Fathers would guide the U.S. as it celebrated its 250th anniversary.
“This historic anniversary presents us with the opportunity to reflect once again on the nation’s founding principles in the hope that America will remain ever true to the dream that has earned it the title of land of the free and home of the brave,” said the pope.
Leo, who is originally from Chicago but has not visited the U.S. since becoming pope in May 2025, has previously sent a few video messages to local events in the U.S. but not to a national audience.
The pope warned last month that history would condemn world leaders who treat immigrants harshly. He gave the address a day before he was due to travel to Lampedusa, an Italian island that has become a port of call for one of the world’s deadliest migration routes.
POPE URGES U.S. TO UNITE AROUND COUNTRY’S IDEALS
Leo also urged the U.S. in his speech to pass laws that “recognize and safeguard” life from conception until natural death.
“The moral greatness of a nation is manifested, above all, in its capacity to support, protect and cherish the lives of all, especially the most vulnerable and those whose worth is questioned,” said the pope.
Leo did not mention Trump or any other U.S. political leader by name. He urged the U.S. to be united and to work for long-term solutions to its problems.
“In order for a nation to flourish, it must be truly united; united not by goals bound to momentary endeavors, but by ideals that do not fade with the passing of time,” he said.
The National Constitution Center is a nonprofit organization and museum. Its Liberty Medal honours people “who strive to secure the blessings of liberty to people around the globe.”
Previous awardees include former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the Dalai Lama.
(Reporting by Joshua McElwee; Editing by Crispian Balmer and Rod Nickel)
