UNITED STATES
Daily Reporter
By PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press
First Posted: May 27, 2014
BOSTON — A Massachusetts man who took part in a private meeting six years ago between Pope Benedict XVI and victims of sex abuse by Roman Catholic priests said Tuesday that he hopes another summit planned soon with Benedict’s successor will be more productive.
The forthcoming meeting at the Vatican between Pope Francis and a half-dozen victims, announced Monday, is being organized by Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the archbishop of Boston. It will mark the first such encounter for Francis, who has won early praise for his concern for the poor but has gotten mixed reviews for his response to church abuse.
The pope said the meeting would take place early next month. But the Archdiocese of Boston said in a statement that the details of the meeting haven’t been finalized and that the meeting was expected to take place “in the coming months.”
Bernie McDaid, of Peabody, Massachusetts, founder of the advocacy group Survivors Voice, said he expected the meeting to be a “dog-and-pony show.”
“I believe it’s always going to be church first, children second,” said McDaid, who has not been invited to the meeting with Francis.
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