LOURDES, France | Pope Leo XIV urged the Catholic Church to acknowledge its failings and confront the deep wounds caused by abuse within its ranks on Sunday, hours before meeting privately with survivors of clerical sexual abuse during his four-day visit to France.
Speaking to bishops and pilgrims at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, Leo called for continued vigilance against sexual abuse and stressed the Church’s responsibility to protect vulnerable people. His remarks came as he prepared to meet seven survivors selected to represent a wider group of victims. Reuters reported that the private meeting was intended to give survivors an opportunity to speak directly with the pope.
The meeting is a significant part of Leo’s first official visit to France, which began September 25 and includes stops in Paris, Saint-Denis, Lourdes and Metz. Vatican News said French bishops had emphasized from the beginning that Leo wanted a personal encounter with abuse survivors, leading organizers to limit the meeting to seven participants to allow for direct conversation.
The issue has remained one of the most serious challenges facing the French Catholic Church. A landmark 2021 investigation by the Independent Commission on Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church, known as CIASE, estimated that about 216,000 people who were minors at the time were sexually abused by Catholic clergy or religious figures in France between 1950 and 2020. When people abused by lay workers serving the Church were included, the estimated number rose to about 330,000.
The report, released after two and a half years of investigation, documented decades of abuse and examined institutional failures surrounding the cases. Its publication prompted renewed demands from survivors for accountability, recognition and stronger safeguards within the Church. Reuters reported ahead of Leo’s visit that some survivors remain skeptical about whether the papal encounter will lead to faster or deeper reforms.
Lourdes provided a particularly significant setting for the pope’s message. The sanctuary is one of the world’s best-known Catholic pilgrimage sites, associated with the reported apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubirous in 1858. Church authorities formally recognized the apparitions in 1862, and the site subsequently developed into a major international destination for pilgrims, including people who are sick or disabled.
During Sunday’s visit, Leo also called for protection of the weakest and emphasized the dignity of human life. The message comes as France continues to debate questions surrounding medically assisted dying, adding a broader ethical dimension to the pope’s visit to Lourdes. The Associated Press reported that Leo has consistently opposed euthanasia and assisted dying.
Lourdes has welcomed millions of pilgrims since the 19th century. According to the sanctuary, international pilgrimages began soon after the apparitions, with the first foreign national pilgrimage arriving from Belgium in 1874. The shrine has since expanded to accommodate visitors from around the world.
Leo’s meeting with abuse survivors is expected to be one of the most closely watched moments of his four-day French journey. The encounter places the Church’s continuing response to its abuse crisis alongside the pope’s broader message of protecting human dignity and those most vulnerable.
Paraluman P. Funtanilla
Paraluman P. Funtanilla is Tutubi News Magazine's Marketing Specialist and is a Contributing Editor. She finished her degree in Communication Arts in De La Salle Lipa. She has worked as a Digital Marketer for start-up businesses and small business spaces for the past two years. She has earned certificates from Coursera on Brand Management: Aligning Business Brand and Behavior and Viral Marketing and How to Craft Contagious Content. She also worked with Asia Express Romania TV Show.
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
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