France Defends Gay Priests

Paris - France on Wednesday condemned the Vatican for blaming gay priests for the paedophile scandal, saying it was "unacceptable" to lump the two together.

"This is an unacceptable linkage and we condemn this," said foreign ministry spokesman Bernard Valero.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, sparked a furore on Monday when he said homosexuality, not celibacy among the clergy, was at fault for the child abuse crisis engulfing the Catholic Church. - AFP