Vatican: Pope Misquoted on Pedophile Cardinals

And he didn't say he'd 'find solution' to celibacy
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 14, 2014 12:27 AM CDT
Vatican: Pope Misquoted on Pedophile Cardinals
Pope Francis reads a speech during a weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.   (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis has made headlines around the world with an interview in which he said 2% of clergy, including cardinals, are pedophiles, but the Vatican says those weren't his words—and it wasn't exactly an interview. The words attributed to the pontiff in the La Repubblica newspaper came from the journalist's memory of the conversation and "the individual expressions that were used and the manner in which they have been reported, cannot be attributed to the pope," a Vatican spokesman tells Vatican Insider. He says the interview was not recorded, and the pope never checked it for accuracy.

Specifically, the spokesman says, the affirmations that cardinals are among pedophiles in the clergy and that Francis says he "will find solutions" to priestly celibacy can't be attributed to the pontiff. The published remarks raised eyebrows because "there is often a studied ambiguity in Pope Francis' off-the-cuff statements," the BBC's Rome correspondent notes. "He wants to show a more compassionate attitude towards church teaching than his predecessors, but this can sometimes cause consternation among his media advisers," he says. (More Pope Francis stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X