After the Independent Commission conducted a two-and-a-half-year investigation into the sexual assault of minors in the French church, the report was published in Paris on October 5 this year. Pope Francis expressed his sorrow for the harm caused and expressed his gratitude to the courage to report. The report pointed out that since 1950, more than 210,000 people in France have been violated by Catholic priests and monks. The ambassador of the Holy See, Archbishop Migliore, also attended the press conference.
(Vatican News Network)The Pope is now concerned about the French church and the victims, and is deeply saddened by the “terrible reality”. The Independent Committee held a press conference in Paris on the morning of October 5 to introduce the results of more than two years of investigating violations by the French church. Subsequently, the Director of the Press Office of the Holy See, Matteo Bruni, stated that Pope Francis recently received the bishop from France to report on his duties and learned about the relevant news.
Bruni said: “The pope first thinks of the victims, deeply saddened by their trauma, and thanked them for their courage to report. The Pope also thinks of the French church, and pray that she will recognize this terrible reality and unite with the Lord. To embark on the road of redemption for the suffering of these weakest children.” The Director of the Press Office of the Holy See stated that the pope prayed for the victims and entrusted the “people of God in France” to the Lord in his prayers, especially It is a victim, “Pray for the Lord to give them comfort and comfort, and achieve the miracle of healing through justice.”
This report is as extensive and detailed as it was announced before the press conference. This is the result of the hard and intensive work of the 21-member independent committee commissioned by the French bishops and monks. At the press conference in Paris, President Jean-Marc Sauvé first spoke and quoted a letter from a victimized woman to express the situation that has emerged during the past two and a half years, which sometimes “causes turbulence and discouragement.” , But it also brings hope, expecting to have a “new beginning” and “another relationship” because of this painful experience. A member of the committee emphasized that the atmosphere of listening to the victims was “humane”, which was the core aspect of drafting the report. Committee members also mentioned the “tears of a seventy-year-old man” and “the anger of a woman.” In short, the work of listening precedes the investigation of experts.
François Devaux, a victim of the priest Preynat in the parish of Lyon and one of the founders of the “Voice of Freedom” association, spoke in the name of the victim. His speech expressed sorrow and anger. He also thanked the committee for its work and called it “sacrifice for the public good.” Devo said: “Members of the committee, you are back from hell.” The victim asked the church to carry out deep reforms, and said that he had encountered silence and “systemic disability” in the painful struggle and felt betrayed. .
The basis of this report is data from many testimonies, studies, and archives. Chairman Sove explained that the content of the report is very detailed, but it cannot be said that there are no omissions. As announced a few days before the press conference, the committee speculates that between 1950 and 2020, there will be about 2,900 to 3,200 priests and monks involved in pedophilia in France. But this estimate is one-sided. A national survey shows that a total of 216,000 people in France today have suffered assaults by Catholic priests and monastics, with an error of around 50,000. If the violations committed by lay believers are included, especially incidents that occur in the school environment, this estimated value will climb to 330,000.
Sauve explained that in the entire French society, 5.5 million people had been sexually assaulted before the age of 18. Family and circle of friends are still the main environment, but crimes in the Catholic Church remain high, even in the recent past, and 80% of the victims are teenagers. Sauve condemned that the Catholic Church’s corporatist ideology has long tried to cover up these cases, especially to silence the victims on the condition of compensation. Therefore, the chairman of the independent committee called for “powerful action”, including recognition of past behavior and preventive measures in nurturing and vocational discrimination.
The report lists 45 recommendations, such as: strengthening the internal supervision mechanism; better defining the role of the bishop so that the bishop will not be involved in the case while making a judgment; and allowing lay believers to participate more in the management of the church. Chairman Soway called it “the work of truth, forgiveness, and reconciliation”, emphasizing that the Catholic Church is an important member of society and must work hard to “repair damaged alliances.” “Our hope cannot and will not be destroyed. The church can and must do everything it can to repair the damage and rebuild everything that has fallen apart.”
The church’s response was pain and shame: a number of bishops and monks attended the press conference, who had previously commissioned an independent committee to investigate. Archbishop Éric de Moulins-Beaufort, president of the French Bishops Conference, admitted that the scale of violence in the church was “quite alarming.” The voices of the victims made them “disturbed and deeply traumatized”, and they also praised Dewo for his frankness and “truth.” The president of the French Bishops’ Conference promised that the bishops will devote the time needed to read this report carefully and draw conclusions from it, especially at the plenary meeting in November this year.
Sister Véronique Margron, president of the French Federation of Men and Women’s Institutes (CORREF), expressed “heartache” and “extreme shame” to the situation presented in the report. Crimes against humanity”. The church must work hand-in-hand with other organizations, and the 45 recommendations in the report are “signs of trust in the church.”
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