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Pope Acknowledges Abuse Scandals Have Outraged, Driven People Away
Pope Francis acknowledged Tuesday that the sex abuse scandals rocking the Catholic Church have outraged the faithful and are driving them away, and said the church must change its ways if it wants to keep future generations.
Francis referred directly to the crisis convulsing his papacy on the fourth and final day of his Baltic pilgrimage, which coincided with the release of a devastating new report into decades of sex abuse and coverup in Germany.
Francis told a gathering of young people in Estonia, considered one of the least religious countries in the world, that he knew many young people felt the church had nothing to offer them and simply doesn’t understand their problems today.
“They are outraged by sexual and economic scandals that do not meet with clear condemnation, by our unpreparedness to really appreciate the lives and sensibilities of the young, and simply by the passive role we assign them,” he told a gathering of Catholic, Lutheran and Orthodox young people in the Kaarli Lutheran Church in the capital Tallinn.
He said the Catholic Church wants to respond to those complaints transparently and honestly.
“We ourselves need to be converted,” he said. “We have to realize that in order to stand by your side we need to change many situations that, in the end, put you off.”
It was a very public admission of the church’s failures in confronting sex abuse scandals, which have roared back to the headlines recently with revelations of abuse and coverup in the U.S., Chilean and now German church. The German bishops conference on Tuesday was releasing a report that found that some 3,677 people — more than half of them 13 or younger and nearly a third of them altar boys — were abused by clergy between 1946 and 2014.
The report, compiled by university researchers, found evidence that some files were manipulated or destroyed, many cases were not brought to justice, and that sometimes abusers were simply moved to other dioceses without the congregations being informed about their past, according to the results that leaked earlier in the German press.
The abuse scandal, which erupted in Ireland in the 1990s and subsequently Australia and the U.S., now threatens Francis’ own papacy since a former Vatican ambassador accused him of rehabilitating an American cardinal who slept with seminarians. In addition, Francis badly botched a case of coverup in Chile for which he has tried to make amends.
Francis has declined to respond to the accusations he himself covered for the U.S. cardinal, but the Vatican is expected to soon.
Francis’ visit to Tallinn marked the last stop in a four-day pilgrimage that also took him to Lithuania and Latvia. He aimed to encourage the Christian faith in the Baltics, which saw five decades of Soviet-imposed religious repression and state-sponsored atheism, as well as the World War II-era occupation by Nazi Germany.
Upon arrival Tuesday, Francis praised Estonia’s social and economic transformation in the quarter century since the Soviet collapse. But he warned that a certain “existential ennui” can set in when societies lose their cultural roots and put their faith in technological progress alone.
“One of the evident effects of technocratic societies is a loss of meaning in life and the joy of living,” he said. Interpersonal and intergenerational bonds can be lost, depriving young generations of foundations to build a common future, he said.
Estonia is considered both one of the most tech-advanced countries in Europe and one of the least religious societies in the world. More than half of Estonia’s 1.3 million people profess no religious affiliation. The Lutheran and Russian Orthodox churches count the most followers of those who do, while 6,000 people are Catholics.
In her welcoming speech, President Kersti Kaljulaid acknowledged that rapid changes taking place amid robust economic growth — something particularly visible in the Baltic nations — shouldn’t mean the “vulnerable among us” are neglected.
She presented Francis with a special digital ID card giving foreigners access to dozens of digital services in the Baltic country ranging from medical services to signing legal contracts and filing taxes.
The government says over 37,000 people from dozens of countries have currently been registered as “e-residents” in Estonia.
force. Therefore, in order to avoid further price increases, the Trump administration has called for other producers to boost their output and urged some other countries to cut imports from Iran. According to oil markets, it may be even about 1.5 billion barrels per day. Nonetheless, such growth in prices may be influenced not by the Algiers summit but Iran’s latest terrorist attack; gunmen attacked an annual military parade in the city of Ahvaz that killed 25 people, including 12 members of the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Iran’s authorities have already announced retaliatory actions to be carried out.
Following the Algiers meeting, Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak stated that high oil prices were not profitable for anyone. Interestingly, his Saudi counterpart Khalid Al-Falih noted that he could be satisfied with the current state of the oil market.
However, Novak assured that Russia was ready to increase its oil extraction after the U.S. restriction against Iran had finally entered into force. The state authorities are currently considering coming back to the October 2016 level. But Moscow has already criticized U.S. sanctions to be introduced and unlike large corporations, especially Western ones, it has no intention to limit its energy cooperation with Iran.
Holders Argentina and leading contenders Spain were handed kind draws for the 2026 World Cup in a star-studded ceremony on Friday, which saw US President Donald Trump receive FIFA’s new peace prize.
The event in Washington started the final countdown to the tournament, six months out from the first-ever 48-team World Cup, with much-fancied France among those receiving a harder task.
Lionel Messi’s Argentina will begin their defense of the trophy they won in Qatar in 2022 against Algeria, and will also face Austria and debutants Jordan in Group J.
Heavily-fancied Spain, the European champions, will kick off their campaign against first-time qualifiers Cape Verde before also taking on Uruguay and Saudi Arabia in Group H.
Thomas Tuchel’s England will hope to win Group L, which features beaten 2018 finalists Croatia as well as Ghana and Panama.
Two-time winners France, meanwhile, face awkward tests against Senegal and Erling Haaland’s Norway in Group I, which will be completed by an intercontinental play-off winner from either Iraq, Bolivia, or Suriname.
The 2026 tournament will be held across the United States, Mexico, and Canada from June 11 to July 19, with 16 more teams added to the global showpiece, up from the 32 nations involved in Qatar in 2022.
That means a total of 104 matches, compared to 64 games last time.
While the US will host the majority of matches, including the final at MetLife Stadium outside New York, three of the 16 venues will be in Mexico and two in Canada.
“We’ve worked closely with those two countries, and the coordination and friendship and relationship have been outstanding,” Trump said at the Kennedy Center after receiving his prize from FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
“It is truly one of the great honors of my life. It is such an honor to be with Gianni. He has done such an incredible job,” he added.
“The world is a safer place now. The United States a year ago was not going too well, but now it is the hottest country anywhere in the world.”
Trump seized the limelight, but Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum were also in attendance.
While snow fell outside amid freezing temperatures in the US capital, some of the biggest stars in the American sport and entertainment world appeared on stage inside.
The event was co-hosted by supermodel Heidi Klum and American actor and comedian Kevin Hart, and featured performances by the Village People, Robbie Williams, and Andrea Bocelli.
NFL legend Tom Brady, ice hockey icon Wayne Gretzky, and former NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal were among the stars helping to conduct the draw.
Elsewhere in the draw, co-hosts Mexico will take on South Africa in Group A in the opening game of the tournament at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on June 11.
Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil and surprise 2022 semi-finalists Morocco came out together in Group C, which also features Scotland and Haiti.
Germany’s opponents in Group E will be the Ivory Coast, Ecuador, and Caribbean minnows Curacao, while Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal will face Uzbekistan, Colombia, and a play-off winner.
Co-hosts the United States got a manageable draw, with Paraguay, Australia, and a European play-off winner in Group D.
The top two teams in each group advance to the last 32, joined by the eight best third-placed teams.
“It will be the greatest World Cup ever, the greatest event that humanity has ever seen. We have three beautiful countries, 16 wonderful host cities, 48 excellent teams who will compete in 104 matches to become the one and only world champion,” Infantino said.
“This is like 104 Super Bowls in one month — this is the magnitude of what we are organizing,” he added of the tournament.
Six finals berths are still to be decided in the playoffs to take place in March.
Because of the complexity, teams will only learn the full details of their match venues and kick-off times on Saturday, a day after the draw.
2026 World Cup Groups
Below are the 12 groups for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, 2026:
Group A
Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, a qualifier
Group B
Canada, a qualifier, Qatar, and Switzerland
Group C
Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland
Group D
United States, Paraguay, Australia, a qualifier
Group E
Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador
Group F
Netherlands, Japan, a qualifier, Tunisia
Group G
Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand
Group H
Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay
Group I
France, Senegal, qualifier, Norway
Group J
Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan
Group K
Portugal, a qualifier, Uzbekistan, and Colombia
Group L
England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama
US President Donald Trump says he believes Russia’s Vladimir Putin wants to end the Ukraine war despite inconclusive talks in Moscow, as US officials prepare for a follow-up meeting with Kyiv’s top negotiator.
Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner huddled into the early hours with Putin in the Kremlin but reached no breakthrough on halting Europe’s worst conflict since World War II.
The Kremlin said afterward it found parts of the US plan to end the war unacceptable, even though the proposal includes Ukraine ceding parts of the eastern Donbas region it still holds nearly four years after Russia’s invasion.
“I can tell you that they had a reasonably good meeting with President Putin,” Trump says about the talks, adding that the talks were “very good.”
Trump says it is too soon to tell what will happen “because it does take two to tango.”
Pressed on whether Witkoff and Kushner got any sense that Putin genuinely wants to halt Russia’s nearly four-year-old invasion, Trump replies: “He would like to end the war. That was their impression.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Monday he would focus only on Israel’s “best interests” when he weighs Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request for a pardon on corruption charges.
“It will be handled in the most correct and precise manner. I will consider solely the best interests of the State of Israel and Israeli society,” Herzog said in a statement.
Netanyahu announced Sunday he had submitted a pardon request, saying the long-running cases were tearing Israel apart.
US President Donald Trump also wrote to Herzog last month, seeking a pardon for Netanyahu. The premier has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the proceedings.
Netanyahu and his wife Sara stand accused in one case of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods such as cigars, jewellery and champagne from billionaires in exchange for political favours.
The premier is also accused of seeking to negotiate more favourable coverage from two Israeli media outlets in another two cases.
Since the cases have exposed deep divisions in Israeli society between his backers and opponents, Netanyahu said he was seeking a pardon to help “lower the flames and promote the broad reconciliation that our country so desperately needs”.
Netanyahu has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the ongoing court cases and made no admission of guilt on Sunday in announcing his bid for a pardon.
Before a hearing Monday, attended by Netanyahu, protesters against and in support of the prime minister chanted slogans outside the courthouse in Tel Aviv, including some dressed in bright orange prisoner-style jumpsuits.
“He should be standing on trial just like every other citizen in Israel,” protester Paula Keusch told AFP.
But pro-Netanyahu demonstrator Rafael Shamir said: “If the good of the country leads Netanyahu to request a stay of the trial, then I support him.”
AFP
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