Religion

Pope expresses ‘shame’ following French report on abuse

Vatican City, Oct 6 (EFE).- (Camera: Alvaro Padilla) Pope Francis on Wednesday said “this is a moment of shame” for the Catholic Church following a damning report on hundreds of thousands of cases of sexual abuse of children by the French clergy over the past 70 years.A commission investigating historical claims of abuse in the French Catholic Church found that around 330,000 children were sexually abused by between 2,900 and 3,200 priests since 1950, and that the abuse was systematically covered up by Church authorities.FOOTAGE OF THE POPE'S MASS.SOUNDBITES OF POPE FRANCIS.Translation:Yesterday the episcopal conference and the conference of French religious men and women received the report of the independent commission on sexual abuse in the church in charge of evaluating the extent of assaults and sexual violence committed against minors from 1950 onwards. Unfortunately, they turn out to be considerable numbers. I wish to express to their victims my sadness and my pain for the traumas they have suffered, and my shame, our shame, for the long inability of the Church to put them at the centre of their concerns, assuring my prayers. And I pray and we pray together to you Lord, glory to you, and shame for us, it is the moment of shame. I encourage the bishops, the faithful, superiors and religious to continue all efforts so that similar dramas are not repeated.I express to the French religious my closeness and my paternal support for them to overcome this ordeal, which will do good. I invite French Catholics to assume their responsibilities to ensure that the church is a safe home for all.