Pope Leo XIV urges French Church to continue fight against sexual abuse
Speaking in Lourdes on Sunday morning, the Pope addressed the issue of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, a closely watched aspect of his visit.
Pope Leo XIV urged the Catholic Church to continue its fight against sexual abuse during a Mass in Lourdes, France, on Sunday. The pontiff, drawing crowds of nearly 800,000 in Paris the previous day, addressed the issue during his homily, appealing for the Church to take responsibility for past wrongdoing. He emphasized the importance of acknowledging faults and committing to spiritual progress, stating that healing requires recognizing and confronting infidelity and harmful deviations within the Church.
Pope Leo XIV met with French bishops, praising their efforts to address abuse while urging vigilance and support for clergy members. However, the meeting drew criticism from some survivors who questioned the selection process, alleging that Church officials chose participants instead of allowing survivor organizations to do so. The French Catholic Church has faced intense scrutiny over its handling of sexual abuse, with an independent investigation estimating that around 330,000 children were sexually abused over a 70-year period by clergy and Church workers.
The Church has established an independent compensation system, recommending over €20 million in compensation to date.
Written by urgent.news from Euronews's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
