Pope
Francis has offered a public apology for a number of recent scandals to rock
Rome and the Vatican. The pontiff is presiding over a three-week council to
discuss church teachings and family.
Deutsche Welle, 14 Oct 2015
The apology
from the head of the Roman Catholic Church comes as the Vatican finds itself at
the center of a number of scandals, including a gay priest coming out against
the church's stance on homosexuality and statements against Rome's mayor, who
resigned last week.
"I
want, in the name of the Church, to ask forgiveness for the scandals which have
recently hit Rome and the Vatican. I ask you for forgiveness," the pope
said to an audience at Saint Peter's Square on Wednesday.
The pontiff
is overseeing a three-week global council of cardinals and bishops to discuss
church teachings and the family. It started off with a Polish priest who had
been at the Vatican for 17 years coming out as gay and criticizing homophobia within the church. He was dismissed.
That was
followed by Rome's mayor, Ignazio Marino, resigning over a scandal in which he
wined and dined friends and family using city funds. The pope and church had
said they had little confidence in the mayor's ability to handle millions of
pilgrims for the Jubilee Year of Mercy in December. The pope also said on his
return from the US that the mayor had not been invited to Philadelphia but had
come anyway.
In another
scandal, a leaked letter showed that at a dozen conservative cardinals had
criticized the way the synod was being run and questioned any compromises the
church took on marriage.
In issuing
the apology, the pope did not mention any particular scandal or provide
examples.
cw/kms (AFP, AP)
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