Pope Francis addresses Middle East war, sexual abuse and abortion on plane returning from Belgium

During a brief press conference on the plane returning from Belgium, Pope Francis answered questions, including one about Israel’s targeted killings in Lebanon and Gaza, and others related to his meeting with from victims of abuse in Brussels, to the role of women in society and why he thinks former Belgian King Baudouin should be canonized.

It was an American television journalist who asked the first question.

We read this morning that 900 kilo bombs were used in the targeted assassination of Nasrallah. There are more than a thousand displaced people and many deaths. Do you think Israel may have gone too far with Lebanon and Gaza? And how to solve this problem? Is there a message for these people?

Pope Francis began by saying: “Every day I call the Gaza parish of over 600 people, and they tell me about the things that are happening there, as well as the cruelty that is happening there. »

“Defense must always be proportionate to attack,” the pope said. “When there is something disproportionate, we see a dominant trend that goes beyond morality. When a country with its forces does these things – no matter the country – does it in such a superlative (exaggerated) way, these are immoral actions.

Even though the question centered on Israel, Pope Francis diplomatically avoided naming the country and answered “any country,” but his response was clear and did not exclude Israel.

He recalled that morality exists in war, even if war itself is immoral. The rules of war are a sign of a certain level of morality.

“But when that doesn’t happen,” he said, that is, when the rules of war are ignored, “we see – as they say in Argentina – ‘bad blood’. » The expression “bad blood” in this context means “bad intentions”. .”

On Friday evening, Pope Francis had a two-hour meeting at the nunciature with 17 victims of sexual abuse by clergy in Belgium. On the plane, a Dutch-speaking journalist said victims often spoke of “cries of despair, the lack of transparency, the closed doors in the (trial) processes, the silence towards them, the slowness of the process and the question of economic compensation.

“It seems that things only changed for them when they spoke to you,” the journalist said, recalling that the victims had “made a series of demands.” He asked the pope two questions: “How do you plan to proceed with these requests? and, secondly, “would it not be better to create a department at the Vatican for this purpose, an independent body, as some bishops suggest, to better face this scourge and regain the trust of the faithful?

Pope Francis first answered the second question by saying: “There is a structure (at the Vatican) and the president is a Colombian bishop. There is an abuse commission created by Cardinal (Séan Patrick) O’Malley. It works, and they receive all the things in the Vatican and discuss them. In addition, he said, “I also receive victims of abuse at the Vatican.”

Pope Francis called his meeting with the victims at the nunciature in Brussels a duty. Some, he says, note that according to statistics, “40 to 46 percent of abuse occurs in the family, in the neighborhood and only 3 percent in the church.” But Francis said that didn’t matter to him, because “in the Church we have a responsibility to help people who have been mistreated and to care for them.”

“Some people need psychological help, and (we need to) help them that way. Others talk about (the need for) compensation for them,” François said, emphasizing that “this is civil law.” He stressed that in Belgium compensation amounts to around 50,000 euros and stressed that “it is too weak”. But he stressed that “the victims must be compensated and the aggressors punished”.

“Abuse is not a sin that occurs today and perhaps there will be no tomorrow,” the pope added. “It’s a trend, a psychiatric illness, (and) we need to provide treatment and monitor them that way.” We cannot leave an abuser free to live an ordinary life with responsibility at parish or school.

He explained that some bishops who have abusive priests who have been tried and convicted have given them a certain type of job, such as in a library, but without contact with children in schools or parishes. He said he had told the Belgian bishops “not to be afraid and to move forward”, but he stressed, as he did today in his homily at Mass and at other interviews in Belgium: “The shame is to conceal. It’s a shame.

An Italian journalist recalled that yesterday, after the meeting at the University of Louvain, a statement was issued saying that “the university deplores the conservative positions expressed by Pope Francis on the role of women in society.”

The journalist said that it was somewhat restrictive to talk about women only in terms of motherhood, fertility and care, and that this too was somewhat discriminatory, because it is a role that also belongs to men . She also noted that the universities of Leuven and Leuven have raised the issue of ordained ministries in the Church.

Pope Francis first commented on the statement from the University of Louvain, released as the event was scheduled to end. “This statement was issued while I was still speaking,” he said. “It was written in advance, and it’s not moral.”

As for women, the pope said: “I always speak of the dignity of women. And I said something I can’t say about men: the Church is a woman. She is the wife of Jesus. Masculinizing the Church, masculinizing women is neither human nor Christian. The feminine has its own strength. In fact, women – and I always say this – are more important than men, because the Church is woman, the Church is the bride of Jesus.

He then remarked: “I see there is a dull mentality that doesn’t want to hear about this. »

As if to reinforce his point, Francis reaffirmed what he has always said: “Woman is the equal of man”. He went on to say: “As for ministry, the mysticism of woman is greater than ministry. »

He recalled a theologian who posed the question of whether the Petrine ministry was greater than the Marian ministry. “The Marian ministry is greater,” the pope explained, “because it is a ministry of unity that involves others; the other (the Petrine) is a surveillance ministry.

“The maternal (nature) of the Church is the maternal (nature) of woman,” he said. “The (Petrine) ministry is a much lesser ministry, (it is) given to accompany the faithful, but always in the maternal (nature) of the Church. Many theologians have studied this and say it’s a real thing, I’m not saying modern, it’s not archaic.

In another question to the pope, who was sitting in his wheelchair in the center aisle of the plane, a Belgian television journalist told him that his words at the tomb of King Baudouin had aroused some astonishment in Belgium and were considered interference in the democratic process. life of Belgium. She noted that the king’s beatification process appears to be linked to his position (on abortion) and asked the pope: “How can we reconcile the right to life and the defense of life with the right of a woman to have a life without suffering?

Pope Francis said: “The king was courageous, because faced with a law of death, he did not sign it and he resigned (for one day). It takes courage, doesn’t it? It takes courage. You need a politician with pants (as they say in my country), that is to say a courageous politician.

“It was a special situation and (the king) gave a message (by doing so). He did it because he was a saint. He was a holy man. And the beatification process will continue, because we have proof of it,” the pope said.

Then, answering the other part of the question, Francis said: “Women have the right to life, to their lives and that of their children. Let’s not forget that. Abortion is murder. Science says that less than a month after conception, all the organs are already there. We kill a human being. Doctors who engage in this are – pardon the expression – hitmen. This cannot be disputed. We are killing a human life. And women have the right to protect life.

His remarks echo those he made on the flight home from Singapore on September 13, in his comments on the US elections. Then Francis added – although he was not asked about it: “Contraceptive methods are another matter, another thing. Let’s not confuse the issues, I’m only talking about abortion. We can’t debate it. Forgive me, but it’s the truth.