ROME — Pope Leo XIV joined a special event remotely on Friday, calling on the United States to renew its dedication to the founding principles of protecting life and human dignity — just one day before the nation marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Speaking via live video from Rome to an audience at the National Constitution Center, the first U.S.-born pope in history reflected on America’s long tradition of welcoming immigrants and upholding religious freedom. The Philadelphia-based center serves as a nonpartisan hub for constitutional education and debate.
As part of the event, the center presented Leo with its prestigious annual Liberty Medal — an honor given each year to a person “of courage and conviction” who works to advance liberty across the globe. The center recognized Leo this year for his “lifelong work promoting religious liberty and freedom of conscience and expression around the world — ideals enshrined by America’s founders in the First Amendment.”
With the medal draped around his neck, Leo addressed the gathering from Rome on the anniversary’s eve. He was set to spend July 4th itself at a location carrying deep symbolic weight given the current administration’s immigration crackdown: the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, a destination for hundreds of thousands of migrants escaping conflict, hardship, and poverty.
Leo and President Trump have been at odds over the pope’s position that migrants deserve to be treated with dignity, welcomed, and supported — a stance rooted in the Gospel’s call to “welcome the stranger.”
In his remarks, Leo pointed to America’s origins, describing the country as built by “courageous men and women who dreamed of liberty and of a better life for themselves and for their children,” who declared that all people are created equal and possess certain unalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
He also invoked the “noble vision” of the nation’s Founding Fathers, crediting it with making America “a byword for freedom, as the country opened its doors to successive waves of immigrants, enabling them and their children to play their part in shaping the future of the nation.”
Leo further drew on the Declaration’s affirmation of the right to life, stating that every person holds inherent human dignity and must be protected from conception through natural death — language consistent with the Vatican’s opposition to abortion and euthanasia.
“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,” he said.
The Chicago-born pontiff closed with a prayer that the founding ideals of shared human dignity, equality, and fundamental rights would serve as a “guiding light” both today and in the years ahead.
He expressed hope that the 250th anniversary would “be the occasion of a solemn recommitment to these ideals that have made America a country that values peace and prosperity, a country characterized by generosity and nobility of heart.”
Previous recipients of the Liberty Medal include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the late civil rights leader and U.S. Rep. John Lewis.
