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Vatican's rare step: Pope Benedict XVI admits errors, takes frank look at controversy over Holocaust-denying bishop
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Pope Benedict XVI has made an unusual public acknowledgment of Vatican mistakes and turmoil in his church over an outreach to ultraconservatives that led to his lifting the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying bishop. In an attempt to end one of the most serious crises of his papacy, he said in a letter released Thursday that the Vatican must make greater use of the Internet to prevent other controversies.
The Vatican took the rare step of releasing the German-born pope's personal account of the incident addressed to Catholic bishops around the world. Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi said the letter — released in six languages — was "really unusual and deserving of maximum attention."
The pope's seven-day trip to Africa — the fastest-growing region for the Roman Catholic church — begins Tuesday and includes stops in both Cameroon and Angola.
"Pope Benedict XVI is a charismatic leader, a holy man who is coming to make my faith deeper," said Augustine Meh Zang, 55, a Yaounde businessman.
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Photos courtesy of Pier Paolo Cito / AP Photo and AP Photo / Rebecca Blackwell
Original Source: ABC News
