At the start of an otherwise joyous and well-received trip to the United States, Pope Francis
infuriated some abuse victims when he praised American bishops for
their handling of the sexual abuse scandal and told priests that he felt
their pain.
On
the last day of his journey, Francis stepped to a lectern here before
hundreds of seminarians and bishops from around the world and tried to
salve the open wound. He said he had met in private with a group of
victims and pledged that “all responsible will be held accountable.”