Pope: Abuse scandal is Church's fault

The pope blamed the church’s own sins for the clerical abuse scandal today and called for profound purification to end what he called the “greatest persecution” the church has endured.

His strong comments placed the blame for the crisis squarely on the sins of paedophile priests, repudiating the Vatican’s initial response to the scandal in which it blamed the media as well as pro-choice and pro-gay marriage advocates for mounting a campaign against the church and the pope.