Vatican Avoids Mentioning Sex Scandal

Pope Benedict the Sixteenth ended Holy Week celebrations in Rome with the Regina Coeli (“Queen of Heaven”) prayer.

The 82-year-old pontiff said men and women are all „angels,” but did not mention the alleged less-than-angelic behavior of some of the Church’s clerics.

[Pope Benedict XVI, Rome Catholic Church Head]:
„We are messengers of his resurrection, of his victory over evil and death, we carry his divine love with us. Of course, we remain men and women, but we receive the mission of „angels“, messengers of Christ: it is given to everybody with the Baptism and the Confirmation. And it is especially received by priests, ministers of Christ, through the sacrament of the Order; I would like to underline this during this priestly year.“

The celebrations for Holy Week have been clouded by accusations that the Church in several countries mishandled and covered up episodes of sexual abuse of children by priests, some dating back decades.

Cardinal Angelo Sodano broke with recent papal ritual for a papal Easter Mass by delivering a surprise address saying the church would not be intimidated by “petty gossip” about sexual abuse of children by priests.

The Vatican is feeling the pressure from a growing scandal concerning sexual abuse of children by priests, and reports of a possible cover-up that have inched ever closer to the Pope himself.

Some reports have accused the pontiff of negligence in handling abuse cases in previous roles as a cardinal in his native Germany and in Rome.

The Vatican has denied any cover-up over the abuse of 200 deaf boys in the United States by Reverend Lawrence Murphy from 1950 to 1974.

The New York Times reported the Vatican and Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict, were warned about Murphy but he was not defrocked.

Foto: NTDTV