Hey Father John, How are ya??? (6)

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- During his six day visit to the United States, Pope Benedict XVI met with victims of priest sexual abuse.

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Read: NBC17's Frank Graff Blogs From Pope's Pilgrimage

Here's the breakdown of the sexual abuse crisis:
Since 1950, over 4,000 priests have been accused of molesting minors in the U.S.
The church has paid out more than $2 billion to abuse victims
The scandal has forced at least six dioceses into bankruptcy

Five victims met with the Pope in the Chapel of the Papal Embassy in Washington D.C.

The meeting consisted of prayer and tears as the Pope listened to the victims.

"They prayed with the Holy Father, who afterwards listened to their personal accounts and offered them words of encouragement and hope," said Papal Spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi.

Prior to the meeting, the Pope celebrated mass with 45,000 people at Washington Nationals baseball stadium.

During the mass, Pope Benedict spoke about the sex scandal, urging Catholics to help the victims and trust the clergy.


The Pope has a full schedule ahead for the rest of his visit. Today he'll address the United Nations in New York; Saturday he'll hold a mass in St. Patrick's Cathedral, then meet with young Catholics; and on Sunday, the Pope will visit ground zero and say mass at Yankee Stadium.