Pope Leo XIV Meets with Abuse Survivors During Apostolic Journey to Lourdes
During his recent apostolic visit to Lourdes, Pope Leo XIV held a private meeting with seven survivors of clerical sexual abuse. The Pope listened to their personal accounts and proposals while expressing his firm commitment to preventing such abuses from occurring in the future. He emphasized his desire for the Church to serve as a sanctuary of comfort and healing for all those affected by these tragedies. The group of survivors represented a variety of contexts, including schools and parishes, and some participants chose to remain anonymous. Attendees described the encounter as a significant and hopeful step toward fostering peace and reconciliation within the Church.
3 days ago
Pope Leo XIV met privately in Lourdes with seven survivors of clerical sexual abuse, heard their accounts and proposals, and pledged to work to prevent others from suffering similar harm. The encounter came alongside his call for French bishops to continue safeguarding reforms with the “greatest vigilance,” amid ongoing debate over how survivors are represented and supported. 1 2 4
The Sept. 27 meeting took place at the local bishop’s residence and lasted nearly two hours. The group consisted of four men and three women, accompanied by Bishop Gérard Le Stang of Amiens, who leads the French bishops’ conference council on preventing and combating abuse. 2 4
The Vatican said Leo spoke with each survivor individually and privately, listening to their experiences of abuse, the pain and suffering they endured, and their suggestions for preventing abuse. He prayed with some of them, then met with the group, thanked them for their testimony, expressed solidarity with survivors more broadly, and asked them to pray for him. 1 2
Five participants were publicly identified. They included survivors of abuse at the Notre-Dame de Bétharram boarding school, in parishes and a choir, and by former priest Bernard Preynat; two others chose to remain anonymous, including one survivor of Abbé Pierre. 2 4
Several participants described the pope as attentive and sincere. Jérôme Guillement said Leo’s words seemed carefully chosen, while Olivier Mardi said the pope responded to concrete proposals and recognized the need for sustained commitment and vigilance. 4
The French bishops’ conference and the Conference of Religious of France selected the seven participants after contact with around 40 groups and individuals. Organizers said the smaller format was intended to allow a substantive exchange, and the participants also brought letters from people and groups who were not in the room. 2
Some survivor associations criticized the process, saying organizations and their representatives were excluded. Bishop Pierre-Antoine Bozo, spokesperson for the French bishops’ conference, said a meeting with all the groups would have been too large for the pope to listen to individuals in depth; survivor advocate Antonia Sobocki stressed that no one person or group speaks for all survivors. 1 4
Earlier that day, Leo told the French bishops that they had taken measures involving listening, seeking truth and justice, making amends, and strengthening prevention and protection. He urged them to continue that work and remain vigilant. 1 2
The meeting took place against the background of France’s 2021 CIASE report, which estimated that about 216,000 minors were abused by clergy and religious from 1950 to 2020. The estimate rose to about 330,000 when abuse by laypeople working in Catholic settings was included. 1 4
Following the report, the French Church introduced safeguarding measures and compensation processes. The national authority that handled recognition and reparation claims concluded its mandate in August 2026, and the bishops established a permanent independent body to support victims and survivors. 1
Before meeting the bishops, Leo stopped to pray before a memorial plaque dedicated to victims of clerical sexual abuse. Its inscription describes survivors’ anger at having been endangered and left without help, and says the Church’s institutional culture had protected itself rather than victims. 1 4
The visit also drew attention to mosaics by Marko Ivan Rupnik, who is accused of sexually and spiritually abusing more than 20 women and is facing a canonical trial. The mosaics on the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary were covered ahead of Leo’s visit and are to remain hidden while a longer-term solution is considered. 1 4
Bishop Bozo said the artwork had become a symbolic burden for survivors and that covering it was a first step, with a new work eventually needed. Before the visit, five women who allege abuse by Rupnik urged Leo to provide greater transparency about the trial, saying they had received no updates. 1*
The Church’s obligations of justice, accountability, and healing toward survivors of clerical abuse
The Church’s obligations toward survivors of clerical abuse are not exhausted by expressions of sorrow or calls for forgiveness. They include hearing survivors, acknowledging harm, pursuing justice and reparation, caring for those harmed, holding responsible people to account, and preventing abuse and concealment. Pope Leo XIV describes listening, truth, justice, reparation, prevention, and real paths to healing as the Church’s response to those wounded by clergy.
Justice begins by taking survivors’ accounts seriously and recognizing the harm done. Pope Leo XIV teaches that listening to people harmed by sexual and other forms of abuse is integral to justice, alongside acknowledging the injury, providing just reparation, and taking steps to prevent recurrence.
Reparation is more than an apology: it is a concrete effort to address harm. Its appropriate form will depend on the circumstances; the available sources establish the obligation to seek just reparation but do not specify a single remedy for every case. The Synod also calls the Church to care for victims, acknowledge its shortcomings, ask forgiveness, and rebuild trust.
Responsibility is not limited to the person who committed abuse. Pope Francis has acknowledged that failures by Church leaders to stop abuse and assist victims have themselves caused harm and scandal. The Church must therefore address both abusive acts and failures of leadership, rather than treating the crisis solely as a matter of an individual offender’s sin.
Accountability also requires processes through which allegations can be received and addressed. Pope Francis pointed to the provision of places for receiving accusations and caring for those who report harm, while insisting that prevention and protection must be strengthened. A 2010 papal statement said that abusers must answer before God and properly constituted tribunals, and urged them to acknowledge guilt, conceal nothing, and submit to justice. These sources affirm accountability, but do not provide enough detail to describe the procedures or legal standards applicable in every case.
Healing is not a timetable imposed on survivors, nor can it be demanded as proof of forgiveness or loyalty to the Church. Abuse can have lasting effects on survivors’ relationships, families, and communities; some survivors seek to be heard, believed, and helped to understand what happened. Pope Leo XIV says that every wounded person must be able to find sincere listening, welcome, protection, and genuine paths to healing.
Christian hope should not be used to minimize suffering or rush reconciliation. Pope Francis described healing as a long and difficult path and emphasized that the Church must not turn away from the enduring effects of abuse. Reconciliation may be meaningful for some survivors, but it cannot be presumed or made a condition for receiving care or justice; the cited teaching describes it as a path, not an obligation imposed on the person harmed.
The Church’s duty extends beyond responding to past cases. It must protect minors and vulnerable adults, prevent further abuse, and prevent cases from being covered up or perpetuated. The responsibility is shared across the Church: each member, according to their role, is called to help prevent abuse and work for justice and healing.
Taken together, these teachings make the standard clear: survivors must be heard and cared for; harm must be acknowledged and repaired as far as possible; wrongdoing and failures to act must be addressed; and protection and prevention must be made real. Forgiveness and mercy do not replace truth or justice. The Church’s witness depends on whether it accepts these obligations in practice.