VATICAN CITY
Catholic News Service
By Junno Arocho Esteves Catholic News Service
4.25.2018
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A survivor of clergy sexual abuse in Chile said he hopes his meeting with Pope Francis will be an opportunity to make a difference and bring an end to a culture within the Catholic Church that disparages victims and makes them feel guilty for coming forward.
“I hope that it is not just about me. I hope I can convey the pain of thousands of people who are still suffering, and that this is the beginning of the end of this culture of abuse and this culture of cover-up among bishops,” Juan Carlos Cruz said in a telephone interview with Catholic News Service April 25.
In a statement released by the Vatican April 25, Greg Burke, director of the Vatican press office, said Cruz, James Hamilton and Jose Andres Murillo will meet individually with Pope Francis and will stay at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the Vatican residence where the pope lives. The pope’s individual meetings with the men will take place April 27-29 and then he will meet them as a group April 30.
“The pope thanks them for accepting his invitation,” Burke said. “During these days of personal and brotherly encounter, the pope wants to ask their forgiveness, share his pain and shame for what they have suffered and, above all, listen to all suggestions that can be made to avoid the repetition of such reprehensible acts.”
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