Vatican City • The largest association of religious sisters in the United States called Thursday for an overhaul of the male-led leadership structure of the Catholic Church, after Pope Francis publicly acknowledged the problem of priests and bishops sexually abusing nuns.
The Leadership Conference of Women Religious also appealed in a statement for reporting guidelines to be established so abused nuns “are met with compassion and are offered safety.”
The conference’s statement followed Francis’ acknowledgment this week that clergy abuse of nuns was a problem. The pope said the Vatican was working on it but that more needed to be done.