UNITED STATES
The Seattle Times

By Mary Dispenza
Special to The Times

THERE was a time when I would have been among the throngs chanting “Viva la papa” when Pope Francis arrives this week. However, as a survivor of priest sex abuse as a child, along with other survivors, I am experiencing very unsettling feelings about his presence in the United States. The pope symbolizes the dismal past and present response to the darkest era in the Catholic Church — that of sex crimes by clergy and the continued, systematic cover-up by bishops and popes.

Yes, Pope Francis is a breath of fresh air and brings a new tone. Taking care of our Earth is a worthy cause (“On Care for Our Common Home”), and caring for the poor and downtrodden is admirable. Yet, I find that Francis is skirting an elephant that still remains largely unaddressed in…