Pope Leo XIV addressed French bishops, urging them to continue their work by maintaining 'maximum vigilance' regarding the epidemic of abuse during a meeting held in Lourdes as part of his visit to France.
On the same day, the Pope was scheduled to meet in Lourdes with a group of seven victims of sexual violence as part of his trip to France.
Arnaud Gaillard, president of the Mouv'Enfants association, told France Info radio that they are facing 'large-scale crimes, including crimes against humanity.' He noted that the Pope had met with six victims in Spain and seven in France.
Gaillard recalled that an independent commission established in 2021 assessed the number of victims of sexual violence in the Catholic Church of France and related institutions over the past 70 years at 330,000 people, equivalent to '13 children per day.'
Gaillard, who is himself a victim of abuse, stated that he wrote to the Élysée Palace to participate in the visit but received no response, and also to the Vatican Nunciature in Paris, which assured him there would be no time for a meeting with the Pope. He called this 'two consecutive insults' and emphasized that French President Emmanuel Macron 'should stand by his fellow citizens who have been victims' of abuse in the Church.
He added that it is 'striking' for victims like himself; he feels personally hurt that the head of state did not mention this issue.
Yolande Du Faye de la Tour, president of the De la parole aux actes association, described it as 'painful' for victims to hear speeches from their 'aggressors.' She stated that victims are told to sit at the table with their aggressors. Fayet de la Tour recalled that the 2021 investigation found that 'between 4% and 6% of French clergy' committed sexual abuse. According to the association's president, observing the Pope's actions, she sees 'a man, men, and even more men.'
During the meeting with the French bishops, Leo XIV urged them to continue their work in recognizing and compensating victims of sexual violence. In the homily he delivered during mass with a large gathering in the Marian sanctuary in Lourdes, he called for the 'healing of deep wounds, infidelity, and painful deviations.'
A meeting with seven victims of sexual violence is planned for this day—an event of very modest scale for the associations, but the Vatican justifies it by the desire to learn from personal testimonies.