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Pope Leo XIV has appointed Father Renzo Pegoraro as the new president of the Pontifical Academy for Life. Father Pegoraro, a bioethicist with a medical degree, takes over from Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, who reached the retirement age of 80 in April.
Father Pegoraro has been serving as chancellor of the academy since 2011. His appointment was made public by the Vatican on May 27. The announcement follows another recent appointment by Pope Leo XIV, naming Cardinal Baldassare Reina as grand chancellor of the John Paul II Pontifical Theological Institute for Marriage and Family Sciences.
Archbishop Paglia had initially offered his resignation at age 75 but was asked by Pope Francis to continue until he turned 80. In an interview with La Stampa on May 26, Archbishop Paglia shared details about his extended tenure.
The Pontifical Academy for Life was founded in 1994 by St. John Paul II. Its statutes were updated by Pope Francis in 2016 to emphasize "the defense and promotion of the value of human life and the dignity of the person." This includes studying ways to promote respect between genders and generations and integrating material and spiritual values towards an authentic 'human ecology.'
Father Pegoraro will celebrate his 66th birthday on June 4. He earned his medical degree from the University of Padua in Italy in 1985 before obtaining a degree in moral theology from Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University. Ordained as a priest in 1989, he also holds an advanced degree in bioethics from Italy’s Catholic University of the Sacred Heart.
His professional background includes teaching bioethics at various institutions, serving as secretary-general of Padua’s Lanza Foundation, and holding positions such as president of the European Association of Centers for Medical Ethics between 2010 and 2013.
