LEUVEN (BELGIUM)
La Croix International [Montrouge Cedex, France]
September 30, 2024
By Mikael Corre
The three-day “apostolic journey” of Pope Francis to Belgium has largely been an occasion for Belgian advocates to call on the Catholic Church to better address clergy sexual abuse, to reconsider its view of women, to integrate LGBTQ+ individuals, and to “open up to gender.”
Two days after meeting privately with 17 victims of pedophile priests, Pope Francis said he “felt their suffering” during a Mass at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels before urging the local church “not to cover up the abusers.”
In his homily, concluding his trip to Belgium September 29, he did not spare the episcopate: “I ask everyone: do not cover up abuse! I ask the bishops: do not cover up abuse! Condemn the abusers and help them recover from this disease of abuse,” the pope declared to the numerous faithful present, estimated at 40,000 by authorities.
However, Francis said nothing about the Vatican’s responsibility. When asked on the flight back to Rome about the possibility of creating an “independent structure” there, he merely pointed to the existence of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, which has been criticized for its lack of competence, financial transparency, and inability to oversee the powerful Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. “It works, and it receives requests,” Francis said. His words on clergy sexual abuse were highly anticipated in Belgium, where much had been done to encourage him to revise his statements. In Belgium, this “apostolic journey” was mainly an occasion for advocacy.
Lively exchanges at the Catholic university
On September 27, King Philippe of Belgium invited victims to the royal residence, where the pope gave his first speech to the authorities. “It took so long for their cry to be heard,” the king said to Francis. “When something is wrong, we cannot accept it being hidden,” echoed Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, who was added to the protocol at the last minute.
In response, Francis improvised, referring to “crimes” comparable to the biblical episode of Herod’s massacre of the innocents. “Someone might say to me, “Your Holiness, according to the statistics, the vast majority of abuse is in the family, in the neighborhood, in the world of sport, or in school. Yet, even one case is enough for us to be ashamed!” he said before reversing the reasoning during the flight, as he often does, to remind people that the church is not the only institution affected.
In Belgium, this was not the first time a pope was invited to be scolded. In May 1985, St. John Paul II was criticized for “the pomp” of the Vatican and questioned about sexual morality and contraception, notably by students in Louvain-la-Neuve (Wallonia) and Leuven (Flanders)—the Catholic university having been split into two distinct entities 50 years ago.
The 600th anniversary of this institution was the reason for Francis’ trip, where he faced blunt challenges not only from students but also from representatives of the Catholic institution that had clearly not invited him just to listen.
Controversy over the role of women
At UC Leuven, the tone was set by a statement from the faculty of theology asserting that the role of theologians is not to be “ventriloquists for the Holy See.” On September 27, the university’s rector, Luc Sels, criticized the church’s “rigidity” on gender issues and its lack of openness to the LGBTQ+ community. “Why do we tolerate such a great difference between men and women in a church that is so often supported by women?” he added in a speech much longer than the pope’s.
The next day, at the French-speaking university in Louvain-la-Neuve, the atmosphere had apparently changed. After a warm welcome in Italian by UCLouvain’s rector, Françoise Smets, a student spokesperson asked Francis: “What does the notion of ‘integral development’ mean for the Catholic Church? Is the church ready to develop this concept from an intersectional perspective, taking into account class, gender, and race inequalities?”
“I appreciate what you said,” the pope replied, though he had not directly responded to Rector Luc Sels’ questions the previous day. In Louvain-la-Neuve, his lengthy discussion on the role of women, described as “fruitful receptivity, care, vital dedication,” did not prevent applause, nor did it stop the rector from immediately issuing a statement denouncing his “conservative positions” on women—a phrase used in a communiqué signed by “UCLouvain,” which she authorized and which was published just minutes after the meeting ended.
King Baudouin and abortion
“This statement was pre-written; it’s not moral,” Francis grumbled on the plane, where he reiterated that “the church is a woman” without clearly explaining the reference to Saint Paul (Ephesians 5:27) and the theology that follows from it. That theology, notably that of Hans Urs von Balthasar, already a reference for his predecessors, sees the church as composed of two poles: a masculine one, dedicated to ministry, and a feminine one, dedicated to receptivity. On Sunday, at King Baudouin Stadium, some female worshipers dressed in white stood up during the Mass to once again call attention to their marginalization in the church.
The role of women was not the last divisive topic of the visit. On Saturday, September 28, after an emotional encounter with the Catholic community in the Koekelberg Basilica, one of the largest in Europe, Francis descended into the royal crypt of the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, accompanied by the Belgian king and queen. In a press statement, the Vatican later announced that in front of King Baudouin’s tomb—whose beatification process Francis said he had initiated—the pope praised the Belgian sovereign’s stance against abortion. “A murderous law,” he said, which caused embarrassment for the Belgian monarchy, which plays a significant unifying role in this linguistically, socially, and politically divided country.
Constitutionally, the palace must remain strictly neutral, and the Vatican is aware of this. So why choose to communicate about a “private” visit? According to several sources, the Holy See wanted to remind people that the head of the Catholic Church and the Vatican State does not travel solely to be reprimanded.
Excerpt from the pope’s statement during the Angelus prayer in Brussels on Sunday, September 29.
“I continue to follow with pain and much concern the expanding and escalating conflict in Lebanon. Lebanon is a message, but right now, it is a battered message, and this war has devastating effects on the people: so many, too many people continue to die day after day in the Middle East. We pray for the victims and their families, and we pray for peace. I call on all sides for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon, in Gaza, in the rest of Palestine, in Israel. Release the hostages and allow humanitarian aid. Let us not forget the martyred Ukraine.”