The Vatican says Pope Benedict XVI shares the same sense of "outrage, betrayal and shame" as Irish Catholics over cases of clergy sexual abuse in that country and the handling of the abuse by the Church, CNS is reporting today. A pastoral letter on the subject is planned.
From the CNS story:
"The letter 'will clearly indicate the initiatives that are to be taken in response to the situation,' said a statement issued by the Vatican Dec. 11. The statement was released after the pope and top Vatican officials spent 90 minutes meeting with Cardinal Sean Brady of Armagh, Northern Ireland, president of the Irish bishops' conference, and Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin.
"...Pope Benedict, the statement said, 'was deeply disturbed and distressed' by the contents of a report by an independent Commission of Investigation, headed by Judge Yvonne Murphy, which looked at the handling of some 325 abuse claims in the Archdiocese of Dublin in the years 1975-2004."
Read the full CNS story HERE. To read the full statement, posted on the CNS blog, click HERE.
