Pope asks forgiveness over abuse scandal

The pope begged forgiveness from clerical abuse victims today and promised to "do everything possible" to ensure priests never molest children ever again.

He made the pledge during a Mass in St. Peter's Square marking the end of the Vatican's Year of the Priest, a celebration of the priesthood that has been marred by revelations of hundreds of new cases of clerical abuse, cover-up and Vatican inaction to root out paedophiles.

In his homily, the pope lamented that during what should have been a year of joy for the priesthood the "sins of priests came to light - particularly the abuse of the little ones."

He said the scandal was a call for purification of the church.

"We too insistently beg forgiveness from God and from the persons involved, while promising to do everything possible to ensure that such abuse will never occur again," the pope said.

He said that in admitting men into the priesthood and in forming them as clergymen "we will do everything we can to weigh the authenticity of their vocation and make every effort to accompany priests along their journey."

His comments were similar to those reported by the Vatican during his private meeting with abuse victims in Malta in April, during which the pontiff had tears in his eyes as he heard the stories of men who had been molested by priests as children.

But today's comments were a public admission of the sins of priests, a request for forgiveness from their victims and God, and pledge to take action.

It was uttered in a highly symbolic gathering of an estimated 15,000 priests from around the world who went to Rome for a show of support of the pontiff and the priesthood itself amid the scandal.

It is unclear if his comments, though, would satisfy demands from victims groups for a personal mea culpa followed up by a clear-cut plan of action to protect children.

The pope's own legacy has been tarnished by the scandal, since he was archbishop of Munich in the 1980s when he approved therapy for a suspected paedophile who was allowed to resume pastoral duties while being treated.

The priest, the Rev. Peter Hullermann, later was handed a suspended sentence for molesting a boy. In addition, the pope's legacy at the Vatican office that dealt with sex abuse has come under scrutiny.