By Michael Sheridan
New York Daily News
May 11, 2010
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/2010/05/11/2010-05-11_pope_benedict_fears_catholic_churchs_worst_enemy_could_be_sin_within.html
The Pope fears the Catholic Church may be its own worst enemy.
Pope Benedict XVI told reporters on Tuesday that its greatest threat is likely not some outside force, but "sin within the Church," Reuters reported.
"Today we see in a truly terrifying way that the greatest persecution of the Church does not come from outside enemies but is born of sin within the Church," he told reporters while on a plane to Portugal, in response to a question about the child sex abuse scandal.
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| Pope Benedict XVI struggles to restore faith in the Catholic Church, as he fears \'sin within\' is its worst enemy. |
The Pope will be in Portugal for a four-day visit to the shrine at Fatima where the Madonna is said to have appeared to three shepherd children six times in 1917.
The Catholic Church has been beset in recent months with accusations of covering up decades of sexual abuse of children by priests across Europe and the United States. Several Church leaders in Ireland have since resigned, and the Pope accepted the resignation of a German bishop over the weekend.
Bishop Walter Mixa in Bavaria has admitted that he sexually abused a boy, according to Reuters. His offer of resignation had initially been over reports he struck children.
German prosecutors and church officials said on Friday authorities were investigating accusations of sexual abuse by Mixa.
A spokesman for the diocese of Eichstaett said the accusations referred to a time between 1996 and 2000 when Mixa was bishop of Eichstaett.
Three Irish bishops, criticized for how they handled reports of sexual abuse, also stepped down last month.
Reports of abuse by priests began surfacing years ago in the United States, but were largely dismissed at the time by the Catholic Church. The controversy has since spread worldwide, sparking Pope Benedict to promise "church action" in dealing with the child sex scandal.
Contact: msheridan@nydailynews.com
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