Pope Leo meets abuse survivors during historic reckoning tour
Pope Leo visits France on Friday for his first major papal tour in nearly 20 years, meeting abuse survivors.
Pope Leo arrives Friday for his first papal tour to France in nearly 20 years. A 2021 report found the church abused some 330,000 French children over seven decades.
Church leaders showed what survivors describe as cruel indifference to victims. Leo will meet seven survivors in Lourdes and address President Macron and European leaders.
Some 600,000 people have registered for an outdoor Mass on Saturday near Paris's Champs-Élysées. The tour ends with a speech in Metz on rebuilding European values and unity.
Why it mattersThe Pope's direct engagement with survivors signals institutional accountability for one of the Church's deepest crises and may shape how other organisations respond to abuse.
AustraliaThe visit reflects a global reckoning with institutional accountability that influences Australian Catholic communities and organisations facing similar abuse allegations.
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