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Pope Leo XIV meets abuse victims in Peru and says the Church must make amends
- What happened
- Pope Leo XIV met six victims of clerical abuse in Peru on Thursday, some of them linked to the disbanded Catholic society Sodalitium Christianae Vitae.
- Why it matters
- Leo worked in Peru for nearly two decades and, before he became pope, was the bishop designated to hear the society’s victims.
- What’s next
- His six days in Peru include Cuzco and a return to Chiclayo, where he was bishop for a decade.
How this story developed
- 23:59First report
- 05:582nd source
- 05:58Confirmed
- 23:59First reportAl Jazeera English
- 05:582nd sourceFrance 24
- 05:58LatestConfirmedWas: Single source
Full story
Meeting the victims
Pope Leo XIV spent more than an hour on Thursday with six victims of clerical abuse in Peru, France 24 reported. According to the Vatican, he met each person individually, listened to their stories of suffering and pain, and thanked them for their testimony.
Some of the victims are linked to Sodalitium Christianae Vitae (SCV), a lay society founded in the 1970s that spread across Latin America. Leo’s predecessor Francis shut it down in 2025 after years of allegations of sexual, physical and psychological abuse and of corruption. Before his election, Robert Francis Prevost, as Leo was then, was the bishop designated to hear from SCV victims, who said he supported their claims.
Making amends
In an address to bishops earlier on Thursday, the 71-year-old pope said the Church must confront abuse by clergy with truth, justice and accountability, make amends to victims and foster “a culture of prevention and protection”, Al Jazeera and France 24 reported. He called clerical abuse “a reality that has caused us so much pain”.
In April 2026 the Vatican announced plans for a “listening channel” for victims in Lima, and said assets seized from the society would be used to compensate them. Renzo Orbegozo, a 50-year-old victim, told AFP that they were seeking comprehensive reparation.
“Many require psychological and medical support, as well as social reintegration – all of which, ultimately, translates into financial assistance.”
Renzo Orbegozo, France 24(translated)
On the eve of the tour, the US-based group Bishop Accountability presented a list in Lima of 77 members of the Peruvian clergy it said had been publicly accused of abusing minors. Its co-director, Anne Barrett Doyle, called on Leo to apply “zero tolerance”.
A return to Peru
The US-born pope is on a three-nation tour of Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, the country he calls his homeland, only weeks after surgery for lung cancer. He worked there for nearly two decades as a missionary and bishop. In a speech to some 40,000 people he criticised “machismo” attitudes and called violence against women “a reality that wounds all of humanity”.
His six days in Peru take him from the Amazon to the Andes, including Cuzco at more than 3,400 metres, a test of his recovery from surgery, and back to Chiclayo, the northern city where he was bishop for a decade.