Madrid .- The Pope met this Monday for an hour at the Nunciature with six victims of abuse, proposed by the Ombudsman, the dioceses, the Episcopal Conference, and the Repara project for the care of those affected by the Archdiocese of Madrid, whom he listened to “with affection and attention” and assured them of “his closeness and that of the entire ecclesial community”.
According to the Vatican press office, Leo XIV conveyed his commitment “that the proposals received will serve as a basis for future efforts and that the Church may truly be a safe place”.
«This afternoon, June 8, at the Apostolic Nunciature in Madrid, Pope Leo XIV met with six victims of abuse committed by members of the clergy and the Church in Spain, accompanied by ecclesiastical personnel committed to supporting victims», the statement notes.
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Victims from different parts of Spain
According to sources close to the meeting, the survivors come from different parts of Spain and their names were mostly proposed by the Ombudsman, the dioceses, the Episcopal Conference, and the REPARA project, launched by the Archdiocese of Madrid.
In the photos distributed by the Vatican, where the victims’ faces are not visible, the head of Repara, Lidia Troya, can be seen.
During the conversation, which lasted almost an hour, “each of them, based on their own painful personal experiences, offered the Pope proposals so that the Church’s response to these tragic cases may be more effective”.
“The Pope listened with affection and attention, assured them of his closeness and that of the entire ecclesial community, and his commitment that the proposals received will serve as a basis for future efforts and that the Church may truly be a safe and spiritually healthy place, where wounds may find comfort and healing”.
Victim associations regret that Leo XIV obtains a biased view by not receiving them
Victims who were not received by Pope Leo XIV during his visit to Madrid, such as those from the Stolen Childhood Association, have lamented that the pontiff will take away a “biased” view by not having met with the main associations of victims and survivors.
Outside, in front of the Nunciature, were two members of the Stolen Childhood Association, who were not received: the president of the national association Juan Cuatrecasas, father of a victim, and the president of this group in Madrid, José Luis Velasco, also a victim.
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“We are happy for the victims who may have been able to be with the Pope, but we believe it does not reflect reality and, unfortunately, we see that the Church in Spain continues to silence and re-victimize its victims and survivors,” denounced Cuatrecasas.
In his view, the Repara plan has been a “fiasco that comes from within the Catholic Church” and offers a “biased analysis” of reality. He denounces the “unequal treatment” of victims, who suffer in their emotional, physical, and psychological development, and must have the protection of public authorities and the Church when they report, and also, he has demanded, free therapy.
“The greatest enemy of the truth is not the lie, it is silence”
“The greatest enemy of truth is not the lie, it is silence, and in that silence of the victims they have been taking refuge to cover up, to be in many cases accomplices and, of course, to re-victimize us,” he denounced.
Furthermore, José Luis Velasco, a victim of pedophilia by the Spanish Catholic Church and a resident of Infancia Robada Madrid, regrets that the Pope heard “an absolutely biased vision of reality” and missed the part where they could have expressed themselves “without so much secrecy, without so much obscurantism, without that permanent denialism”.
In contrast, the Infancia Robada association has shown its satisfaction regarding how the new system for recognizing abuse in the Church is working, agreed upon with the Government and the Ombudsman, which about 430 people have already joined, according to the figure offered this Monday by the Minister of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes, Félix Bolaños.
“It is being a clean, transparent process, very respectful of the victims. Several victims from the associations have already filled out the Ministry of Justice form, several more have been attended to by a forensic psychologist and a specialist in restorative justice, and now the time for compensation will come,” explained Cuatrecasas, praising the “impeccable” work of the Government, which they will continue to monitor.
