By Joshua McElwee and Marine Strauss

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Pope Francis was pressed firmly by Belgium’s king and premier on Friday for extra concrete motion to deal with sexual abuse by Roman Catholic clergy, a difficulty as soon as extra within the highlight as he visits.

Each King Philippe and Prime Minister Alexander De Croo raised the difficulty in public in unusually forceful language for a papal international journey, at all times a rigorously choreographed occasion.

Philippe informed Francis in a speech welcoming him to Belgium that it had taken the Church “far too long” to deal with the scandals. De Croo stated it had “a long way to go” and that “words alone are not enough”.

“Concrete steps must also be taken,” the premier stated.

Francis’ weekend journey to Belgium is supposed to concentrate on the 600th anniversary of two Catholic universities. However a tv documentary collection and a parliamentary investigation have introduced the Church’s document on clerical sexual abuse to the fore.

The pope was additionally pressed on Friday to rethink the Catholic Church’s ban on ordaining ladies as monks.

Greater than 700 complaints and studies of clergy abuse have been made in Belgium since 2012, in accordance with a Church report. 

Within the assembly on Friday with politicians on the royal Fortress of Laeken in Brussels, Francis sought to offer assurances that the worldwide Roman Catholic Church was tackling the difficulty.

The 87-year-old pontiff didn’t identify particular instances of abuse in Belgium however stated the behaviour of Catholic clergy had supplied “painful counter-testimonies” to the church’s teachings.

“I refer to the tragic instances of child abuse, which is a scourge that the Church is addressing firmly and decisively … by implementing a prevention programme throughout the world,” the pope stated.

In an addition to his ready remarks, he stated the Church should “be ashamed and ask forgiveness” for the abuse of minors, which he known as a criminal offense.

BELGIAN EX-BISHOP DEFROCKED BY POPE FRANCIS

In March, Francis expelled former bishop of Bruges Roger Vangheluwe from the priesthood. Vangheluwe had resigned in 2010 after admitting abusing a nephew, and in 2011 admitted abusing one other. The statute of limitations has prevented felony prosecution.

The pope held a personal assembly with 17 survivors of abuse later Friday on the Vatican’s embassy in Brussels, the place he’s staying throughout his go to. The Vatican stated the encounter lasted greater than two hours, and that the pope listened to them and “expressed shame for what they suffered as children”.

Francis has made addressing abuse by clergy a precedence of his papacy, and created the primary papal fee on the difficulty. He additionally put in a world system for Catholics to report suspicions of abuse or cover-ups by bishops.

However survivors’ teams have questioned the effectiveness of the fee and likewise urged the pontiff to require all Catholic clergy to report suspicions of abuse to authorities.

Each the king and the prime minister additionally talked about the Church’s historic function in Belgium in forcing single moms to offer up their infants for adoption.

Beneath the pretence of being shielded from the stigma of illegitimacy, many infants have been positioned, with the assistance of Church-run social companies, with religious Catholic households, echoing related scandals in Eire and Spain.

Calls for have grown in Belgium for justice, formal apologies, and reparations from each the Church and the federal government for about 30,000 affected individuals.

Francis on Friday known as the observe “the bitter fruit of wrongdoing and criminality”.

UNIVERSITY RECTOR ASKS FOR WOMEN PRIESTS

Francis was confronted once more on clergy abuse at an occasion later Friday at one of many Catholic universities celebrating their founding within the 12 months 1425.

The rector of KU Leuven, which has practically 65,000 college students, informed the pope the church is going through a “great challenge” to revive its ethical authority.

Luc Sels, in an unusually frank deal with throughout a papal go to, particularly at a Catholic college, additionally pushed Francis to permit ladies monks.

“Would the Church not be a warmer community if there was a prominent place for women, including in the priesthood?” he stated.

The Catholic Church has an all-male clergy. The pope has created two commissions to think about whether or not ladies might function deacons, who, like monks, are ordained, however can not have fun the Mass.

Francis has not moved ahead on the difficulty, and didn’t reply to Sels’ query in remarks on the college.