Bishop Raimo Goyarrola of Helsinki has been appointed a corresponding member of the Pontifical Academy for Life for a five-year term ending on 17 February 2031.
The Pontifical Academy for Life (Pontificia Academia pro Vita) is an academy associated with the Holy See, founded in 1994 by Saint John Paul II. Its mission is to study questions related to human life, bioethics and human dignity in the light of the teaching of the Catholic Church. The Academy promotes the protection of human life and respect for human dignity, and serves as an international forum for discussion and research for experts in medicine, ethics, philosophy, theology and the social sciences.
The Academy’s members include clergy, members of religious orders and lay people from different countries. Members are chosen on the basis of their expertise and their work in support of human life, regardless of their religious or national background. The Academy includes ordinary members, corresponding members, honorary members and young researchers.
Corresponding members are experts belonging to the Academy who participate in its research and discussions, but who do not usually belong to the ordinary membership based in Rome. They may take part in the Academy’s meetings, projects and publications, while also contributing the expertise of their own country and academic field. The appointment is made for a five-year term by decision of the Academy’s governing council.
Since 2025, the President of the Academy has been the Italian Archbishop Renzo Pegoraro.
Fides
The Academy’s website is academyforlife.va (Visit an external site. The link opens in a new tab.).