Pope Francis will meet with 15 victims of clerical sexual abuse during his visit to Belgium at the end of the month, the Bishop's Conference of Belgium has confirmed.
The Pope is scheduled to visit Belgium from 26 to 29 September, at the invite of KU Leuven and UCLouvain as the universities mark their 600th anniversaries.
The visit of the head of the Catholic Church comes almost exactly a year after the explosive documentary Godvergeten (which roughly translates to 'Godforsaken') was aired by Flemish broadcaster VRT.
The documentary exposed years of sexual abuse committed by Catholic priests in Flanders, sending shockwaves through the community and giving a voice to victims of abuse perpetrated by religious figures within parish, school and family settings.
It shone a fresh light on historic abuses within the Belgian Catholic Church, and led to both the Federal and Flemish Parliaments establishing separate committees of inquiry. Both parliaments published their final reports in May of this year, each making at least 100 recommendations on how to address child abuse and sexual violence in the church and wider society.
Small group of 15 victims to meet Pope
It had already been confirmed that the Pope would meet with victims during his visit to Belgium. However, on Friday, the Bishop's Conference of Belgium (BCB) disclosed more details about who will be attending. The BCB said that more than 80 people replied to its appeal in June, which sought to gauge interest from victims in meeting Pope Francis.
Everyone who replied was invited to a meeting in early September to "define together the messages and expectations" that will be expressed to the Pope. Some 30 victims participated in the meeting, and the agreed message will be brought to the Pope by a smaller group of 15 people.
The BCB said the Vatican requested a meeting with just 15 people to allow an "atmosphere of sincere listening and exchange" with Pope Francis, and added that the group is made up of "men and women from all the provinces of our country" and "diverse victim groups".
The BCB said that the meeting will take place in "complete discretion", and the exact timing of the meeting is not disclosed on the official programme fro the papal visit.
The church has been accused of handpicking abuse victims to meet the Pope, as it was reported that no victims interviewed in the Godvergeten documentary received an invite.
Victims who expressed an interest in meeting the Pope but were not included in the group of 15 have been invited to write a letter to be presented to him. They will also be invited to a meeting day on the Church's updated policy plan in the autumn.
New action plan to tackle abuse
The Bishop's Conference is working on an adapted action plan in response to abuse in the Catholic Church, partly based on the recommendations of the parliamentary commissions. It expects to launch the new plan this autumn.
Meanwhile, the Belgian Catholic Church continues to operate a number of reception centres for victims of sexual abuse within the church.
Luc Terlinden, Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels and President of the BCB, said the Church "strongly encourages every victim to come forward".
"Yes, there has been a culture of secrecy and silence within the Catholic Church in the past, which has made each of these tragedies even harder. A profound renewal of the Church is only possible when people can finally speak out," he said.
"The victims' meeting with Pope Francis will obviously not suffice, far from it. But it can be an important symbolic step, in addition to all the concrete actions that have already been taken and will follow."
