The pope, who was serving as Bishop Robert Prevost at the time, told how he was confronted by a man on the street when he was in Ireland.
A video of the then-bishop recounting the story is from a recording of a discussion held in Peru in 2019, where he used Ireland as an example of a country that faced multiple child abuse scandals in the Catholic Church.
He said there was also a “rapid change” in the treatment of clergy in the aftermath of such scandals in Ireland.
He described being treated “with extreme affection, with love, respect and adulation” as a priest in Ireland before around 2005, but that after the “crisis” attitudes changed.
“After the crisis, never in my life, anywhere in the world have I been physically attacked as I was in Ireland,” he said,
Bishop Prevost said a man passed him on the street and began “attacking him”, though did not specify when or where the incident took place.
“Fortunately, another Augustinian, who is twice as big as me, defended me. The pain and anger from this man, I don’t know if he was a victim or had lost his faith in the church, I have no idea what happened to him, but I truly believe it is a very important factor in the experience here in the church as well.”
Pope Leo celebrates the canonisation mass of Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati in St Peter’s Square at the Vatican (Andrew Medichini/AP)
Today’s News in 90 Seconds – Saturday, September 13
Before he became pope, it is understood Bishop Prevost visited Ireland twice. His first visit came in 2005, and the second in 2007.
Bishop Prevost was speaking part of a discussion on the prevention of child sexual abuse in the church, using Ireland as an example of a country where many abuse scandals within the church came to light.
He spoke of the need to trust victims of abuse when they share their experiences and the impact of denial in responding to such experiences and scandals within the church.
He also cited Pope Benedict’s pastoral letter to the Catholics of Ireland, which was published in 2010.
A clip from Bishop Prevost’s talk, where he detailed his experience in Ireland, has circulated online in recent days and has been shared by a popular Catholic news-sharing page on social media.