Sex Abusers are ‘Children of God’ Who deserve Love -Pope Francis

Sex abusers are disgusting “enemies” who deserve to be condemned and punished, but also deserve Christian love and pastoral care because they too are children of God, Pope Francis has said.

Francis made his comments on April 29 in a private conversation with Jesuits while he was visiting Hungary.

However, the comment was published on Tuesday by La Civilta Cattolica, an Italian Jesuit Journal.

Abuse scandals have shredded the Catholic Church’s reputation and have been a major challenge for the pope, who has passed a series of measures over the last 10 years aimed at holding the church hierarchy more accountable, with mixed results.

During Francis’ visit, a Hungarian member of the Jesuits religious order asked Francis how it was possible to follow Jesus’ commandment to love enemies when the enemy was a sexual abuser.

“How do we approach, how do we talk to the abusers for whom we feel disgust? Yes, they too are children of God. But how can you love them? It’s a powerful question,” Francis responded.

“The abuser is to be condemned, indeed, but as a brother,” Francis said, calling it “a form of loving the enemy”, although he acknowledged that such an attitude was difficult to live out because of the effect abusers have on people’s lives.

“The abuser is an enemy. Each of us feels this because we empathise with the suffering of the abused … even talking to the abuser involves revulsion; it’s not easy. But they are God’s children too. They deserve punishment, but they also deserve pastoral care,” he said.

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