Pope celebrates Mass with four abuse victims

POPE Benedict XVI met victims of sex abuse by priests before flying out of Australia yesterday, wrapping up a visit marked by his historic apology for the scourge of paedophilia in the Catholic Church.

The Pope, who two days earlier publicly expressed “shame” over the “evils” of clerical child abuse, celebrated Mass with two female and two male Australian victims at St Mary’s Cathedral shortly before leaving Sydney and offered them consolation, the Vatican said in a statement.

“Assuring them of his spiritual closeness, he promised to continue to pray for them, their families and all victims,” it said.

“Through this paternal gesture, the Holy Father wished to demonstrate again his deep concern for all those who have suffered sexual abuse.”

Some Australian victims dismissed the Pope’s apology as simple rhetoric without action and said he should have apologised in front of victims, not other priests.

Even after the Pope met the four victims yesterday, prominent support group Broken Rites said it was concerned that they had been hand-picked.

“I’m afraid that what they’ve done is selected victims who have agreed with what the Church’s policies are,” said spokes- woman Chris MacIsaac.

She said the Pope should have met with Anthony Foster, the father of two girls abused by a priest, who cut short a holiday in Britain to return to Australia in the hope of meeting the pontiff.

Foster, whose one daughter committed suicide this year at the age of 26 after struggling for years to deal with abuse suffered at primary school, said the Pope’s failure to meet him showed a “lack of compassion”.

Before boarding his chartered plane to Rome the 81-year-old pontiff said: “As I bid you farewell with deep gratitude in my heart, may God bless the people of Australia.”

He was seen off at the airport by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who announced that former deputy prime minister Tim Fischer would become Australia’s first resident ambassador to the Vatican.