The Prince of Monaco joins the royal families in Europe and rejects the legalization of abortion.

Pope Leo XIV arrived in the Principality of Monaco yesterday.

The Associated Press (AP) news agency reported that, to the sound of welcome cannons, Prince Albert and Princess Charlene received the Pope at Monaco Helicopter Airport, while Monaco prepared a program for the Pope to meet with the Catholic community in the Cathedral of Notre Dame-Emmaculele, a meeting with young people in the Church of Saint Devout, and a Mass at the “Louis II” football stadium, which is the main stadium of the Monaco club.

This is the first papal visit to Monaco since the visit of Pope Paul III in 1538.

The visit sheds light on how small countries can have an influence beyond their size in the global arena, according to AP. Monaco is one of the small European countries, where “Catholicism” is considered the official religion of the state, and its population is about 38 thousand people, 80% of whom are Catholics. The area of ​​the coastal emirate is about 2.2 square kilometers (about one square mile).

Recently, Prince Albert of Monaco rejected a proposal to legalize abortion, pointing to the important role that “Catholicism” plays in Monaco society. This decision is largely symbolic, because abortion is a constitutional right in France.

By refusing to allow this in Monaco, Prince Albert joined other members of European Catholic royal families who have taken a similar position over the years in support of the Catholic faith in a continent moving toward secularism.

When Pope Francis I visited Belgium in 2024, he announced that he was putting the late King Baudouin on the path to “potential sainthood,” because he had abdicated the throne for a day in 1990 in order not to agree to a law legalizing abortion.

. The Pope’s visit to Monaco highlights how small countries can have an impact beyond their size on the global stage.