VATICAN CITY
Rappler
Ella Ide, Agence France-Presse
Published 10:15 PM, Jul 07, 2014
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis said the suicides of sex abuse victims weighed on his conscience on Monday, July 7, speaking of the “terrible darkness” inside the Church as he met with survivors and pledged to crack down on pedophilia.
At his long-awaited first meeting with victims, the Pope reached out to the tens of thousands of people abused by priests globally, telling them he was sorry for the “grave crimes of clerical sexual abuse committed against you.”
Three male and three female victims from Britain, Germany and Ireland slept in the pope’s residence near Saint Peter’s Basilica before breakfasting with him and spending half an hour each with him.
Francis said there was “no place in the Church’s ministry for those who commit these abuses,” adding: “I commit myself not to tolerate harm done to a minor by any individual, whether a cleric or not.”
In a moving speech written in his native Spanish, the 77-year-old spoke of the “toxic effect” of the abuse scandal, which he admitted had ruined many lives.
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