Pope Francis served as the leader of the Catholic Church from March 2013 until his death in April 2025. During his papacy, he became known for his joyful smile, his simple living choices, and his environmental advocacy. Pope Francis also spoke strongly against domestic violence and for women’s rights.
Pope Francis Supports Italy’s Campaign against Violence against Women
In October 2023, Pope Francis wrote a message in support of a national campaign in Italy against violence against women. He opened by thanking the organizers for bringing up a very topical theme for consideration. He acknowledged that “violence against women is a poisonous weed that plagues our society and must be pulled up from its roots. And these roots are cultural and mental, growing in the soil of prejudice, of possession, of injustice.”
Pope Francis went on, “In too many places, and in too many situations, women are put in second place, they are considered ‘inferior’, like objects: and if a person is reduced to an item, then her dignity is no longer seen; she is considered merely a possession that can be appropriated for anything, even to the point of suppressing her.”
This is the crux of abuse, pornography, rape, and most crimes against women: the woman is treated as an object to be used, sold, discarded. Those who truly see and value women as equals, partners and people will not abuse them. As Lundy Bancroft says, “Abuse and respect are diametric opposites: You do not respect someone whom you abuse, and you do not abuse someone whom you respect.”
Pope Francis cries, “How many women are overcome by the burden and tragedy of violence! How many are mistreated, abused, enslaved, victims of the arrogance of those who would make use of their body and their life, forced to surrender to the greed of men.”
The Role of the Media
News stories often portray violence against women, highlighting high-profile sexual abuse cases or stories of women murdered by their partners. However, as Pope Francis says, “the mass media still play an ambiguous role in this. On the one hand, they favour respect and the promotion of women; but on the other, they continually transmit messages imprinted with hedonism and consumerism, whose models, both male and female, obey the criteria of success, self-assertion, competition, the power to attract others and dominate them.”
Another reason the media’s role is ambiguous is because the media itself is using women – sensational stories sell news. Articles about the injustices done to women may attract attention and strong emotion, but rarely does the media issue any call to action or moral from the story shared. People consume and then move on to the next story, forgetting the horror of the first.
Despite the frequency of news stories about domestic violence and violence against women, few people seem to realize the scope of this issue. The stats are shockingly high; for example, “Italian government data released in 2022 showed that on average one woman is killed every three days in Italy, many of them by an act of violence from an intimate partner or ex-partner” (Catholic News Agency).
Domestic Violence Affects Everyone
Too often, we turn aside, thinking this issue doesn’t affect our families, our churches, our cities. The truth is that domestic violence affects everyone. Statistics indicate that 1 in 4 women in Canada suffer from domestic violence. This means that a quarter of the women in every Catholic church could be facing abuse at the hands of the man who says he loves her.
Pope Francis acknowledges that “where there is domination there is abuse! It is not love that demands prisoners. The Lord wants us to be free and in full dignity. Faced with the scourge of the physical and psychological abuse of women, there is an urgent need to rediscover just and balanced forms of relationships, based on mutual respect and recognition. All kinds of conditioning must be countered with educational action that, starting from the family, places the person, with his or her dignity, at the centre.”
In evangelical circles, women like Ngina Otiende, Sheila Wray Gregoire, Emily Elizabeth Anderson and others are seeking to “rediscover just and balanced forms of relationships” and offer healthy marriage advice. Unfortunately, there seems to be few voices in Catholic communities who are also raising awareness about domestic violence. Instead, Catholic women are given examples such as St. Monica and other women of past centuries who were abused by their husbands and had no options to protect themselves or escape that abuse.
Make a Difference
Pope Francis expounds, “It is our duty, the responsibility of each person, to give a voice to our voiceless sisters: the women who are victims of abuse, exploitation, marginalization and undue pressures. Let us not remain indifferent! It is necessary to act immediately, at all levels, with determination, urgency and courage.”
This is one of the goals of maggieyouville.com – to give a voice to Catholic women in difficult relationships. So many of us are silenced by our abusers, by our fears and doubts, by our wounds and trauma, and more. We need to begin speaking up for ourselves and for each other, to answer the call of the Holy Father to end this scourge.
Pope Francis encourages us, “Salvation came into the world from the heart and flesh of a women; from how we treat women, in all their dimensions, our degree of humanity is revealed.”
We must begin by listening to women who are suffering from abuse, rather than silencing them or telling them to endure their abuse because it leads to holiness. In a preface to Women and Ministries in the Synodal Church, Pope Francis says, “Listening to the joys and sufferings of women is certainly a way to open ourselves to reality. By listening to them without judgment and without prejudice, we realize that in many places and in many situations they suffer precisely because of the lack of recognition for what they are and what they do, and also for what they could do and be if only they had the space and opportunity. The women who suffer the most are often those who are closest, those who are most available, prepared, and ready to serve God and His Kingdom.”
A Prayer Intention
Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of April 2024 was “that the dignity and worth of women be recognized in every culture and for an end to the discrimination they face in various parts of the world.” In a video message about this intention, the pope acknowledges that “we all agree that men and women have the same dignity as persons, but this does not play out in practice.” He says governments need to eliminate discriminatory laws and guarantee women’s human rights.
He adds, “Let us not deprive women of their voice. Let us respect women. Let us respect their dignity, their basic rights. And if we don’t, our society will not progress.”
Pope Francis’ Legacy
During his papacy, Pope Francis has increased the number of women in the Vatican workforce and appointed several women to top positions in its governance. He gave women the right to vote during synods (periodic Vatican summits involving the world’s bishops). He established two study groups to look at a female diaconate. He was also the first pope to publicly acknowledge the scandal of priests and bishops sexually abusing nuns and other women in the church.
These are all steps in the right direction; however, more needs to be done to raise awareness of the issues articulated by Pope Francis in his support of the Italian campaign against violence against women. More Catholics need to be aware of these issues and to take practical, concrete steps to care for the women in their parishes who are facing abuse and domestic violence.
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