Pope Leo to Meet With 7 Abuse Survivors

Pope Leo XIV will meet privately with seven survivors of sexual abuse by priests and other Catholic personnel in France during a four-day visit that begins later this week. The meeting is scheduled for Sunday in Lourdes, one of Catholicism's most important pilgrimage sites, per the AP. Some survivors' groups have criticized the decision to select individuals rather than representatives of established organizations. The seven survivors said in a joint statement last week that they don't claim to represent all survivors. "Engaging in dialog does not mean endorsing," they said.

The French Bishops' Conference said the group includes people who were abused as minors or adults in Catholic schools, parishes, and religious congregations. The meeting comes as France's Catholic Church has begun to reckon with abuse. A 2021 report estimated that 330,000 children in France had been sexually abused over seven decades by priests, other clergy members, church workers, and volunteers. In recent years, the French Catholic Church has established an independent compensation system for survivors and acknowledged the institution's history of abuse.