The bioethics of Francis: elements for the building of a Christian global bioethics

Abstract

In the early years of his pontificate, Pope Francis made little use of the word ‘bioethics’. When he mentioned the word, he used it in a formal sense, to deal with some commission, and not to express a position. But, from 2018 on, Francisco took a well-defined position in relation to bioethics, stating that our times need to expand the traditional view of bioethics to a view of global bioethics, as it is no longer possible to think about health, well-being and human achievement independently of the health of the entire life of the biosphere. This global bioethics, says Francis, is based on Laudato Si. If Francis’s written position on bioethics did not occur immediately when he started his pontificate, the pontiff’s option to “start” his pontificate in Lampedusa, welcoming migrants and refugees, he made it clear what his Church’s commitment would be. The harsh words spoken at Lampedusa, that we have become insensitive to the cries of others and that we have globalized indifference, making us unable to cry for the other, have set the tone for his mission. In this sense, this article intends to investigate the bioethical thought defended by Pope Francis from documents, encyclicals, homilies and letters he wrote.