The ex-pontiff spoke of his "profound consternation" that "evil" had entered so deeply into the Catholic faith. But he denied that he had, either as pope or previously as head of the Vatican office dealing with abuse cases, tried to "cover up" the scandals that tarnished the Church's reputation around the world.
"That the power of evil penetrated so far into the interior world of the faith is a suffering that we must bear, but at the same time must do everything to prevent it from repeating," he said.
The missive, sent to Piergiorgio Odifreddi, an atheist mathematician, and reprinted on the front page of leading Italian daily La Repubblica, was the first published statement from Benedict since he said on his retirement that he would live out his remaining years "hidden from the world".
The letter, which also discussed topics such as the nature of Catholic belief, the conflict between good and evil, and evolution, came just two weeks after La Repubblica published a similar letter from his successor Pope Francis on atheism and agnosticism. » | Nick Squires, Rome | Tuesday, September 24, 2013
