WASHINGTON (DC)
Fox News
Associated Press
Pope Francis on Wednesday praised U.S. bishops for their response to the clergy sex abuse crisis.
Speaking before the bishops at a worship service in Washington, Francis lauded them for what he called their “generous commitment to bring healing to victims.” He praised them for having courage and acting, as he saw it, “without fear of self-criticism.”
The clergy sex abuse scandal erupted in the U.S. in 2002 and turned into the biggest crisis in the history of the American church.
Under enormous public pressure, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops pledged to oust any guilty clergy from church work and enact safeguards for children.
However, the scandal persists, and victims say the bishops still haven’t fully accounted for sheltering abusers. This year, three bishops resigned in crises over their failures to protect children.
Francis also encouraged the bishops in their ministry to immigrants, praising them for taking up the immigrants’ cause and urging the bishops to welcome even more foreigners coming across the border.
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