Print friendly
Pope Francis has asked for forgiveness for the damage that abusive priests have inflicted on children.
He was speaking on April 11 to the International Catholic Child Bureau, a French Catholic network that works to promote the rights of children.
The Pope’s remarks, which were unscripted, appear to be his strongest yet on the subject of child abuse by clergy.
His comments were seen as trying to counter criticism that he has not addressed this crisis as aggressively as he has other issues.
He pledged that the Church “will not take one step backward” in efforts to address the issue.
“I feel compelled to personally take on all the evil that some priests – quite a few in number, though not compared to the total number – and to ask for forgiveness for the damage they have done by sexually abusing children,” Pope Francis said.
“The Church is aware of this damage,” he said.
“It is personal and moral damage, but carried out by men of the Church.
“And we do not want to take one step backward in dealing with this problem and the sanctions that must be imposed.
“On the contrary, I believe that we have to be very firm.
“Because you cannot take chances with children!”
In December, the Vatican announced that Francis would name a commission to advise him on establishing rules and best practices for dioceses around the world on this issue.
In March, Pope Francis appointed the first members.
Half of them are women and one, Marie Collins of Ireland, was sexually abused by a priest as a child.
The appointments raised hopes that the commission would try to tackle the crucial issue of disciplining bishops who do not act to curb suspected abusers.
But many advocates are dismayed that Francis has not met with victims.
They are also upset with his recent comments to an Italian newspaper that the Church has been unfairly singled out for criticism on this issue.
Sources
Related Posts:
News category: World.
