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Chilean victims of sexual abuse said Wednesday that they expressed their complaints to Pope Francis for the "pathological and unlimited use of power" within the Catholic Church, which allowed the scandal to be covered-up for years.
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In a joint statement, three victims, Juan Carlos Cruz, James Hamilton and Jose Andres Murillo, said that the pontiff apologized for not having addressed their complaints earlier, during their four days of private meetings with him in the Vatican. They said the pope had been “very attentive, receptive and empathetic” to their concerns and criticisms of the Catholic Church.
"For almost 10 years we have been treated as enemies, because we fight against sexual abuse and cover-up. Nowadays we met a friendly face of the (Catholic) Church, totally different from the one we met before," the statement read.
“We talked about the pathological and unlimited use, and concealment of power, which is the cornerstone of sexual abuse. We expressed to him (Pope Francis) that the Church has the duty to become an ally and guide in the world regarding the fight against abuse and to be a refuge for the victims, something that is absent.”
The text also described the sexual abuse they, and others, had suffered as being än epidemic that destroyed thousands of lives” and that they had spoken to the pontiff in a “frank and respectful manner...especially about the cover-up of Chilean bishopes.”
In a dramatic shift to his position, Pope Francis acknowledged last month that "serious mistakes" had been made in the handling of the sexual abuse scandal in Chile and said he was ashamed of what happened, according to Reuters.
His statement seem to be in reference to Juan Barros having been officially sworn in as a Bishop by the Pope in 2015, despite an investigation into allegations that he had covered up sexual abuse of minors by his religious mentor, Father Fernando Kardima.
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