Weary Church ‘wounded by her own sin’ – Pope
Credit to Author: Tempo Desk| Date: Sun, 27 Jan 2019 09:12:09 +0000
PANAMA CITY (Reuters) – Pope Francis said on Saturday the Roman Catholic Church was weary and “wounded by her own sin,” in an apparent reference to the global sexual abuse crisis.
Francis made the comment in the homily of Mass for priests, nuns, and members of Catholic lay organizations in Panama City’s newly renovated cathedral of Santa Maria Antigua, the first in mainland America, which was completed in 1716.
The pope, who is in Panama for a global gathering of Catholic youth, has called a summit of the heads of national Catholic churches at the Vatican from Feb. 21-24 to discuss what is now a global sexual abuse crisis.
The February meeting offers a chance for him to respond to criticism from victims of abuse that he has stumbled in his handling of the crisis and has not done enough to make bishops accountable.
In his homily, Francis spoke of “The weariness of hope (that) comes from seeing a Church wounded by her own sin” and of a Church “which so often failed to hear all those cries.”
He used the words “weary,” “wearisome,” or “weariness” about 20 times in the homily.
Brenda Noriega, a youth minister from San Bernardino, California, who was in a delegation that had lunch with the Pope, said she brought up the sexual abuse crisis in the United States.
“The Pope said it is a horrible crime. He reminded us that it is important to accompany the victims, to walk with them, and to be a united Church,” she told reporters afterwards.
Last year was an “annus horribilis” for the Pope, with abuse crises exploding in several countries, particularly Chile and the United States.