NEW YORK
National Catholic Reporter
Joshua J. McElwee | Sep. 24, 2015
NEW YORK
A Vatican spokesman has said that Pope Francis may yet have another opportunity during his continuing visit to the U.S. to address the sexual abuse crisis, in what could be a reference to an upcoming but unannounced meeting with abuse survivors.
The pope may “have other occasions to approach this problem,” Jesuit Fr. Federico Lombardi said at a press conference Thursday evening. Francis’ six-day, three-city trip to the U.S., he said, “is not to an end now.”
Lombardi was responding to an NCR question at the briefing regarding two speeches given by the pope Wednesday in Washington and Thursday in New York.
Both speeches addressed the sexual abuse crisis obliquely, and acknowledged the struggles faced by church officials in handling the issue but not the pain of survivors.
Speaking to some 300 U.S. bishops Wednesday, Francis told them: “I realize how much the pain of recent years has weighed upon you.”
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.