Pope Lav to meet alleged abuse victims during France visit

Pope Lav will meet people who say they were abused by clergy during a four-day visit to France next month that will include a stop at UNESCO headquarters, a meeting with French bishops in Lourdes and an interreligious gathering in the border city of Metz, the Vatican announced.

The Holy See issued a brief statement highlighting a planned encounter with several victims of clerical abuse and saying that the survivors themselves will take part in preparing the meeting; the precise time and place will be announced later.

Earlier this year the pope met six victims during a trip to Spain. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in June: "The pope listened to them with attention and openness, expressed his closeness — as well as the closeness of the entire church community — and vowed that he would strive to ensure that the proposals received would serve as a basis for further efforts, so that the Church can truly be a safe and spiritually healthy place where wounds can find consolation and healing."

Scale of the problem and Vatican steps

A 2021 report estimated that around 330,000 children were sexually abused by church personnel over a 70-year period in France. Last month the pope signalled a continued commitment to fighting abuse by naming French bishop Thibaut Verny to head the Vatican's advisory commission for the protection of children.

The papal trip to France is scheduled for September 25–28 and was confirmed in May; it will be the pope's fourth foreign journey of the year.

In recent weeks he also visited prisoners in Barcelona, saying on that occasion that "the past does not condemn the future."

Photo: Maria Grazia Picciarella / Zuma Press / Profimedia