Pope León XIV addresses Spain's Cortes in historic first, urging peace and migrant dignity

Arrival with state honours

Pope León XIV entered the Congress of Deputies to the strains of the Vatican and Spanish anthems, interpreted by the National Police band. Congress president Francina Armengol and Senate president Pedro Rollán greeted him in the Floridablanca courtyard, where a red carpet and ceremonial mace-bearers preceded a line-up that included Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the heads of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court. Shouts of "Viva el Papa" rose from staff and neighbours. All parliamentary groups were represented except Podemos and the BNG, which boycotted over the Church's handling of abuse cases.

A speech on peace, migration and the protection of life

In an address that mixed diplomatic statecraft with moral exhortation, León XIV called for peace, international law and the rejection of "the law of the strongest". He urged attention to the root causes of migration, warning that discriminating by national or religious origin "gravely violates the universal principle of equal dignity". The Pontiff also insisted that human life must be recognized and protected "from conception to its natural end" — a statement that clashed with the Spanish government's recent move to enshrine abortion rights in the constitution.

There are issues the Pope is stating with complete clarity in the great debates affecting the planet: we must support peace, diplomacy, human rights, international law, and not be swayed by the law of the strongest.

Bolaños stressed that the government is "absolutely aligned" with the Pope's emphasis on migration and protecting the vulnerable, adding that four major agreements with the Catholic Church have been signed since 2021 — the first since 2006 — demonstrating a spirit of "loyalty and mutual respect".

Ovations, echoes and political cracks

When León XIV finished, the hemiciclo rose in a seven‑minute ovation, the longest many congressional employees could recall. It far exceeded the 3‑minute‑49‑second applause for Princess Leonor's constitution oath in 2023.

PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who described the speech as "historic", said he shared "every word" and highlighted the Pope's conviction and call to "disarm political language". Feijóo linked the address to the PP's Christian‑humanist roots.

But that cross‑party bonhomie soon showed fault‑lines. LaSexta presenter Antonio García Ferreras noted that the Pope was "clearly telling the right and far‑right that 'not that way' regarding immigration" — a reference to the "national priority" clauses that PP and Vox have inserted in coalition agreements in several regions. Ferreras predicted that Castilla y León president Alfonso Fernández Mañueco, whose investiture debate is scheduled for Tuesday 9 June, would have to swallow that language again.

I found it correct, humanist. In times so crazy, the arrival of fascism worries the Pope more than it worries Felipe González.

ERC spokesman Gabriel Rufián expressed surprise that PP and Vox deputies applauded a message they "veto with their votes week after week". He downplayed the Pope's traditional stances on abortion and euthanasia as expected Church positions.

A housing protest slipped into protocol

Amid the formalities, Sumar's speaker Verónica Martínez handed the Pope a letter from the Madrid Tenants' Union. The document accuses church‑linked entities of speculative rent increases and evictions, singling out the Venerable Third Order of Saint Francis for the 7 May eviction of 67‑year‑old Mariano Ordaz.

Housing is the engine that is condemning thousands of families to precariousness.

The letter argues that current policies enable speculation and that tenants often must choose "between buying food for their children or paying the landlord". It also names the FUSARA Foundation, managed by the Madrid archdiocese. Sumar's gesture, delivered at peak visibility, sought to bring the housing crisis directly to the Vatican's attention.