Priest abuse survivor groups are criticizing the Roman Catholic Church's decision to have Pope Benedict XVI skip a visit to Boston next year, saying the pontiff is snubbing the city because of its history as a center of priest sex abuse scandals, according to a Time.com report.Benedict is planning to visit New York and Washington next April 15-20 during his first United States trip.
The trip will include stops at the White House, the United Nations and the site of the World Trade Center tragedy.
It will include two stadium open-air Masses.
But the 80-year-old church leader announced he will not be stopping in Boston, where details of the priest sex abuse scandal first emerged in 2001.
The head of the Boston archdiocese, Cardinal Bernard Law, eventually resigned after admitting he had protected a priest whom he knew had sexually abused children.
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), said Benedict is missing a "golden opportunity" to confront the crisis head-on, Time reported, saying the pope was trying to avoid protests in Boston.
One activist said the pope's visit to New York was instead a show of papal support for that city's Cardinal Edward Egan, who has refused to release documents about priests, the Web site reported.
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