Pope ‘ashamed’ of US priests’ abuse

Benedict said the Catholic Church would do everything possible to screen candidates for the priesthood “so that only really sound persons can be admitted”.

 

“It is more important to have good priests than to have many priests,” said the pontiff, who will be greeted upon arrival at Andrews Air Force Base in the state of Maryland, by George Bush, the US president.

 

 

The two have disagreed on a number of issues, most notably over the war in Iraq and the US embargo of Cuba, but have found common ground in opposing abortion, gay marriage and stem cell research.

 

Dana Perino, a White House spokesman, said ahead of the visit that talks between the two were likely to be “frank and open”.

 

Perino said: “They can have very frank and open disussions with one another, but I think that their shared values are stronger than any disagreements on policy that they may have.”

 

A poll released this month by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life showed the German-born pope was viewed favourably by most peole in the US, but was not as popular as his predecessor John Paul II.

 

But Benedict’s visit also comes amid concerns over a decline in the numbers of people in the US joining the priesthood.

 

A recent Catholic University study found that 17 per cent of the priests serving in American churches come from other countries.

 

Enrollment in the four-year theology programs required to join the priesthood have not risen for a decade, the New York Times reported.