UNITED STATES
Boston Globe
By John L. Allen Jr. | GLOBE STAFF MARCH 05, 2014
Pope Francis may have won hearts and minds around the world with his simplicity and common touch, but he offered proof today that he’s also not afraid to put his approval ratings on the line when he thinks there’s a point to be made.
In an extended conversation with the Italian paper Corriere della Sera, which was also published in the Argentine daily La Nacion, the pontiff not only vigorously defended the Catholic church’s record on its child sexual abuse scandals, but also complained that “the church is the only one attacked.”
While the pope touched on many other points in the interview, from divorced and remarried Catholics and birth control to some of the urban myths that have grown up around him, it was his comments on the abuse scandals that seemed most destined to spark reaction.
It wasn’t long in coming.
Within minutes, one advocacy group for victims of clerical abuse had blasted the pope’s rhetoric as “archaic and defensive,” while another styled it as proof that “he doesn’t get it.” Many Catholic voices, however, hailed the comments as a long-overdue rebuttal to a biased habit of ignoring the strides the church has taken, as well as making it a scapegoat for a broader social problem.
What to make of the stark contrast over what Francis had to say? The truth of it is that both sides probably have a point.
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