Pope Frances made the comments on Thursday during an interview that ran today.

The BBC is reporting that Pope Francis has told a reporter that “about 2%” of his priests are child molesters. What’s truly astounding is not the number, but that Francis seems to be the first Pope willing to confront the problem head on through transparency.   

Pope Frances conducted the interview last Thursday with La Repubblica which has published it today. Reports the BBC:

In the interview, Pope Francis was quoted as saying that the 2% estimate came from advisers. It would represent around 8,000 priests out of a global number of about 414,000.

The interview was conducted by reporter Eugenio Scalfari who did not record it.

According to the BBC, Pope Frances also opened the door to ending rules regarding celibacy. Pope Frances noted that the Vatican ordered Priests to be celibate 900 years after the death of Jesus Christ. Some think the Pope was suggesting there is nothing in the bible commanding priests and nuns to be celibate.

Responding to the 2% figure in the article, a Vatican spokesman insisted there were no Cardinals who were child molesters.

Read more:

via BBC News – Pope Francis: ‘About 2%’ of Catholic clergy paedophiles.

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