Famous French priest Abbé Pierre accused of sexual assault and harassment

Washington, DC Newsroom, July 19, 2024 / 5:23 p.m.

The founder of the Emmaus Movement, Abbé Pierre, a once popular French priest who died in 2007, has been accused of sexual abuse and misconduct by at least seven victims – including one victim who was a minor at the time of the alleged assault.

A report released on July 17 by the Emmaus Movement, an international solidarity movement that aims to combat poverty and homelessness, said the victims were mostly Emmaus staff and volunteers, as well as young women from Pierre’s social circle. According to these victims, incidents of unwanted kissing and touching, as well as inappropriate sexual offers and comments, occurred between the late 1970s and 2005.

These allegations were first reported in 2023, when Emmaus France received a complaint from a woman accusing Pierre of sexual assault. An internal investigation led by Caroline De Haas of the Egaé Group followed, collecting the statements of the seven victims. Egaé, a company specializing in violence prevention, shared its belief that Pierre’s actions had affected other victims since the 1950s and 1960s, but the passage of time had made it difficult to obtain further reports and testimonies.

In a recent statement, Emmaus praised the “courage of the people who have testified and made it possible through their words to bring these realities to light. We believe them, we know that these intolerable acts have left their mark, and we stand with them.”

The group then denounces the “unacceptable actions” of Pierre, who “played an important role in their history”.

“We owe it to the victims. And we also owe it to all those who have carried out the movement’s actions every day for over 70 years,” the statement continued. “We share their grief and anger, but also their determination to continue working every day to build a fairer, more united world.”

The Emmaus Movement was founded in Paris in 1949 by Pierre. Before these recent allegations and revelations, the Catholic priest and Capuchin friar was one of the most popular and iconic figures in the French Church.

After being part of the French Resistance during World War II, the priest adopted the name “Abbé Pierre” to conceal his work in producing fake identity cards and helping Jews cross the French border into Switzerland.

Pierre was particularly acclaimed for his efforts to help the homeless population in France. He often raised money and convinced the French parliament to pass laws to help the homeless, including a 1950s law that prohibited landlords from evicting tenants during the winter. This “Trêve Hivernale” law, also known as the Winter Peace Law, is still in force in France today.

Despite his popularity, Pierre has faced other controversies before the recent controversy over alleged sexual harassment. The priest came into the public spotlight in 1996 after defending a friend’s book, “Founding Myths of Israeli Politics,” which questioned the number of Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II.

In a 2005 interview book by Frederic Lenoir titled My God… Why?, Pierre claimed that he had broken his vow of celibacy by having sex as a younger man. Among other things, in the book Pierre expressed his support for married clergy and the ordination of women.

In light of these allegations, the French Bishops’ Conference (CEF) issued a press release praising Pierre’s previous contributions to renewing “our society’s vision of the poorest” while condemning his sexual assaults on women.

“As we await the release of the report, CEF wishes to express its deep sympathy to the victims and its shame that such acts could be committed by a priest,” the press release continued, “and reiterates its determination to work to make the church a safe place.”