Pope promises to protect French sex abuse victims

Pope Leo XIV met with victims of clerical sex abuse in France, reaffirming his commitment to preventing further harm. According to the Jerusalem Post, he met privately with seven survivors, hearing their proposals for improving the Church's safeguarding measures and thanking them for their testimony. The survivors described the meeting as emotional and touching, feeling listened to by the pontiff, who showed compassion and knowledge of their individual cases.

The pope also addressed the issue of sex abuse during an open-air Mass in Lourdes, calling on the Catholic Church to acknowledge its failings and confront the problem. He urged the Church to take responsibility for wrongdoing within its ranks and to have the courage to undergo conversion. The Church's efforts to address abuse were praised by the pope, who also met with French bishops to discuss the issue.

A 2021 report found that around 330,000 French children had been abused by Catholic clergy and lay leaders over seven decades. The pope's visit to France comes amid scrutiny over the Church's handling of abuse cases. According to Punch and Punch Nigeria, the pope took one of the victims in his arms, describing the moment as "extraordinary".

Brief written by urgent.news from Punch, Jerusalem Post, Punch Nigeria, Euronews, PBS NewsHour — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.