Pope: Sex crisis 'badly handled'
POPE IN AMERICA | Benedict says bishops must reach out to those 'so seriously wronged'
WASHINGTON -- Pope Benedict XVI told America's Roman Catholic leaders Wednesday the clergy sex abuse scandal at times was ''very badly handled" -- his harshest criticism yet on the crisis that badly damaged the U.S. church.
Benedict's remarks came at a prayer service Wednesday evening with hundreds of American bishops at a national shrine in Washington.
(AP)
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Before the pope spoke, Chicago's Cardinal Francis George addressed the bishops. George, who is president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the consequences of the scandal "and of its being sometimes very badly handled by bishops makes both the personal faith of some Catholics and the public life of the church herself more problematic.''
On the pope's statement, George said, "it was strongly worded enough for the bishops here. It won't be strong enough for whoever doesn't want to believe that nothing has changed, because it has."
In his comments, Benedict added that ''responding to this situation has not been easy, and, as the president of your episcopal conference has indicated, it was sometimes very badly handled."
He said it is bishops' ''God-given responsibility'' to reach out to those who'd been ''so seriously wronged.''
Earlier, Benedict drew an adoring crowd of 13,500 people to the South Lawn of the White House, where his 81st birthday was celebrated with President Bush -- complete with choruses of ''Happy Birthday."
"It was very, very moving," said the Rev. Mike Boland, administrator of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago, who was among those present. "I think he was very touched by all the people who were there. ... Hopefully, Americans will see [Benedict] in a new way."
Benedict and Bush later spoke alone in the Oval Office for 45 minutes, and a joint statement said they ''reaffirmed their total rejection of terrorism, as well as the manipulation of religion to justify immoral and violent acts against innocents.''
It also said the two leaders ''touched on the need to confront terrorism with appropriate means that respect the human person and his or her rights,'' a reference that White House press secretary Dana Perino could not explain.
Benedict has been critical of harsh interrogation methods, saying prisoners must never be demeaned or tortured.
On Iraq, the discussion steered away from the war itself to focus primarily on worries for the Christian minority in the Muslim-majority country, Perino said.
AP, with staff reporter Mike Thomas contributing
