VATICAN CITY
NBC News
Pope Francis asked for forgiveness for the “evil” of clerical sexual abuse on Friday, addressing head-on an issue that has dogged the church for two decades.
“I feel compelled to personally take on all the evil which some priests, quite a few in number, obviously not compared to the number of all the priests, to personally ask for forgiveness for the damage they have done for having sexually abused children,” he said on Vatican Radio.
He added: “The Church is aware of this damage, it is personal, moral damage carried out by men of the Church, and we will not take one step backward with regards to how we will deal with this problem, and the sanctions that must be imposed. On the contrary, we have to be even stronger. Because you cannot interfere with children.”
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