On Wednesday, August 27, Pope Leo XIV, head of the Catholic Church, addressed representatives of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, which is tasked with growing the Catholic faith in the region.

The address concerned this issue of drug addiction in the region, though the recommendations apply to all regions where drug dependency is a problem. That would be pretty much everywhere, as the Pope acknowledged in his remarks:

I also greet our brothers and sisters from faith-based centres for support, preventive intervention, recovery and integration of young people, who have come from Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas; their presence reminds us that suffering and hope know no borders.

The Pope then explained that the meeting represented the confluence of four bridges:

1. The bridge between the Church and other international aid organizations.

2. The bridge between the Church and science. The Church does not seek to replace science but to inspire it.

3. The bridge between the Church and the pilgrim. In particular, the pilgrims who attended the conference and now go carry out its mission.

4. An ecumenical bridge between the Church and other ecclesial communities.

The Pope then lingered on the importance of the family in dealing with addiction: “There is no better defence against drugs than a good family.” He finished his address imploring participants to make the Church part of the family of people afflicted with addiction:

Herein lies the very heart of the mission you are carrying out: that the Church may be a family, especially embracing those who suffer.

There’s one word missing from the Pope’s address, and that word is “abuse.” You can understand why the pontiff is reluctant to bring up the child abuse scandal that has plagued the church for generations.

He’s absolutely correct that a good family is the most important defense against substance abuse. Yet he does not stress that it is intervention in the earliest moments of life that leads to that “good family.” Is that where the Catholic Church is focusing its drug addiction efforts, or is it too ashamed of its own role in fostering drug addiction to properly address the need to intervene upon pregnancy and not wait until addiction sets in?

More than half of the people in treatment for substance use disorders in the United States were abused as children. It is a more common bond between addicts than genetics. It’s not the substances causing addiction, it’s the stress. And yet the Catholic Church continues to look for the source of addiction in chemistry rather than calamity.

“Quit Hurting Children” might be a better title for an address on reducing addiction among young people in Latin America. Perhaps it should begin with an apology and a promise that the Catholic Church will protect the children entrusted to it, that it will be “a good family.”

Then put the money where it matters, with a commitment to preschool education and free training for expectant families and new parents on how to deal with the stresses of raising an infant. Science shows that nothing is better at building resilience in youth.

The Catholic Church should not let its own disgraceful history of abusing children blind it to the need to proactively intervene to prevent child abuse. The Catholic Church should be empowered by the desire to make amends for its previous mistakes and become the world’s leading experts at preventing the abuse of children.

Written by Steve O’Keefe. First published September 7, 2026.

Sources:

“Address of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV to the Participants in the Meeting Promoted by the Pontifical Commission for Latin America on Addiction-Related Situations in Latin America,” The HOLY SEE, August 27, 2026.

“Pope: Church must help broken families heal from drug abuse,” Vatican News, August 27, 2026.

“Pope Leo XIV: A Good Family is the Best Way to Prevent Drug Addiction,” ACIAfrica, August 27, 2026.

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