'Scourge' of abuse must be rooted out, says Pope, during Lourdes visit

What the report says

Pope Leo used a visit to Lourdes, in southern France, to press French bishops to confront sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church and to stay alert to future cases. According to BBC World News, he addressed the bishops in a private meeting at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes on the third day of his four-day official trip to France, and his comments were later shared with reporters.

Before leading Mass attended by thousands of worshippers, the Pope urged church leaders to continue efforts already under way and to maintain strong vigilance. The BBC report says he also planned a private meeting with abuse survivors later in the day. Lourdes was one stop on a wider visit that drew very large crowds, including an estimated 700,000 people in Paris a day earlier.

The article places the message in the context of France’s wider abuse crisis in the church. It notes that a 2021 inquiry found clergy or lay members had abused about 330,000 children in France over 70 years. Separately, the Pope’s visit also included public worship, meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron, and events aimed at pilgrims and young people.

More broadly, the report says the visit comes as church attendance in France has declined sharply over recent decades, even as some signs of renewed religious interest have appeared.