Pope Francis assures church will listen to victims of sexual abuse
Pope Francis said on Wednesday that the "anguished cry" of clerical sexual abuse victims must be heard as he began a five-day visit to Portugal for a major catholic youth festival. teleSUR
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00:00 Pope Francis said on Wednesday that the anguished cry of clerical sexual abuse victims must
00:05 be heard as he began a five-day visit to Portugal for a major Catholic youth festival.
00:10 The 86-year-old pontiff was welcomed with military honours in Lisbon, where one million
00:16 pilgrims from around the world are expected to take part in World Youth Day festivities.
00:21 The event, a week of religious, cultural and festive activities held about every three
00:26 years in a different city, comes as the church reflects on its future and grapples with priest
00:31 pedophilia scandals.
00:32 A report released in February in Portugal by the Independent Commission concluded that
00:37 at least 4,000 children had been abused in the country since 1950 by clergy members,
00:43 mostly priests.
00:44 Francis' red and spontaneous style has proved highly popular with young people and is expected
00:51 to meet abused victims privately.
00:53 "And this is often accentuated by the disappointment and anger that some people feel towards the
01:03 church, in some cases because of our bad reference and the scandals that have marred its face
01:09 and call us to a humble and ongoing purification, starting with the anguished cry of the victims,
01:15 who must always be accepted and listened to."
01:18 Did that make any sense?