Survivors respond to Pope Leo XIV’s election with grave concern about his record managing abuse cases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 8, 2025
Rome, Italy — As white smoke rises, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) extends its acknowledgment to Pope Leo XIV on the gravity of the role he now assumes. With the title comes a grave reckoning.
“We were once the children of the church,” began an open letter released by SNAP earlier this afternoon. “The sex offender in the collar commits two crimes: one against the body, and one against the voice. The grand pageantry around your election reminds us: survivors do not carry the same weight in this world as you do.”
This letter is not the first of its kind. Survivors wrote to Pope Francis before his death after he announced plans to write an apostolic exhortation to children. He never replied. “Now that task falls upon you,” SNAP wrote to Pope Leo XIV. But they say: “The church has no credibility to speak on children’s rights while it continues to shelter predators and shield bishops from accountability.”
SNAP’s open letter highlights the grim reality underpinning the College of Cardinals — many who voted in this conclave actively shielded abusers, and many who will be appointed to the curia under this papacy bear similar stains. The group has received information from survivors and whistleblowers around the world, publishing their research on ConclaveWatch.org.
The Conclave Watch initiative will continue seeking information about cardinals involved in abuse and cover-up after the conclave as many of these men will be considered for roles in Pope Leo XIV’s curia with oversight of abuse investigations.
Pope Leo’s record on abuse management
As provincial of the Augustinians, Pope Leo XIV allowed Father James Ray, a priest then accused of abusing minors whose ministry had been restricted since 1991, to reside at the Augustinians' St. John Stone Friary in Chicago in 2000, despite its proximity to a Catholic elementary school. When Prevost was Bishop of Chiclayo, Peru, three victims reported to civil authorities in 2022 after there was no movement on their canonical case filed through the diocese. Victims have since claimed Prevost failed to open an investigation, sent inadequate information to Rome, and that the diocese allowed the priest to continue saying mass, attaching photos of the priest saying mass after their complaint to their letter.
SNAP filed a complaint against Prevost under Pope Francis’ 2023 decree Vos estis lux mundi on March 25, 2025.
SNAP is calling for decisive action within the first 100 days:
An independent Global Truth Commission with full Vatican cooperation;
A Universal Zero Tolerance Law adopted into canon law;
International legal agreements mandating transparency and accountability;
A survivor-funded Reparations Fund supported by church assets;
And a Global Survivors Council with the authority to oversee and enforce compliance.
“You can end the abuse crisis — the only question is, will you?” SNAP asks Pope Leo XIV.
Survivors and advocates from SNAP will be available for interviews and commentary in the following days following the announcement.