In a speech made during his visit to Laken Castle in Brussels, Pope Francis spoke about the numerous cases of abuse perpetrated by Roman Catholic clergy over many years. The Pontiff spoke of the “painful testimonies” those that had suffered abuse as a child.
He described the abuse cases as “A scourge that the church is tackling with determination and steadfastness by listening to the victims and giving them guidance”.
The Pope went on to say that extensive programme is being implemented around the world to prevent new cases of abuse from taking place within the Roman Catholic Church.
The Pope then deviated from his prepared text and said “The abuse of minors is a disgrace. We must ask for forgiveness and resolve this issue. We must resolve it with Christian humility. One incident is enough for us to be ashamed. We as a church must apologise. This is our shame and our humiliation”.
The Pope also briefly spoke of the forced adoptions that took place in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. He described these as “a crime”, but at the same time stressed that those that forced, for example, unmarried mothers to give up their child for adoption “acted in accordance with the belief that they were doing good. Often they thought it would be better for both the mother and the child if the child was adopted.”