Pope Commits to Ending Sexual Abuse of Nuns, Reports Reuters

By Philip Pullella

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (Reuters) – Pope Francis, whose papacy has focused on addressing the global crisis of sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy, reaffirmed his commitment on Tuesday to combatting the abuse of nuns by priests and bishops, some of whom have exploited these women as sex slaves.

His remarks came during the return flight from Abu Dhabi, in response to a reporter’s inquiry about an article published in a Vatican magazine highlighting the abuse of nuns within the Church.

In recent times, an increasing number of nuns have come forward, empowered by the #MeToo movement, to share their experiences of abuse by priests and bishops. Last year, the International Union of Superiors General, representing over 500,000 Catholic nuns, encouraged its members to report incidents of abuse.

"It is true… there have been priests and even bishops involved. I think it continues because awareness alone does not stop such behavior," said Francis.

"We have been addressing this issue for a long time and have suspended some priests in connection with these matters," he added, noting that the Vatican is in the process of disbanding a female religious order due to allegations of sexual abuse and corruption, although he did not specify which order.

"I cannot claim that ‘this does not happen in my house.’ It is a reality. Do we need to do more? Absolutely. Are we committed? Yes," he emphasized.

Francis recalled that former Pope Benedict dissolved a religious order of women shortly after his election in 2005, stating that "slavery had become part of it (the religious order), including sexual slavery by priests and the founder." The specific group was not identified, but Vatican spokesperson Alessandro Gisotti confirmed it was a French order.

Before his papacy, Benedict, known as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, led the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican agency responsible for investigating sexual abuse. At that time, Pope John Paul II was in office.

According to Francis, Cardinal Ratzinger sought to investigate the religious order where women were being mistreated but faced opposition, though he did not specify who obstructed the inquiry.

After ascending to the papacy, Ratzinger reinitiated the investigation and ultimately dissolved the order, Francis reported.

Pope Francis has convened key bishops from around the globe for a summit later this month at the Vatican to establish a unified approach to safeguarding children from sexual abuse by clergy.

When asked if similar measures would be taken to address the abuse of nuns within the Church, he responded, "I want to move forward. We are actively working on it."