Vatican Links Pedophilia with Homosexuality

(Vatican City) Expect fireworks from this story. The homosexual community goes to great lengths to distance itself from child abusers.

The Vatican's second-in-command has linked child sex abuse by priests to homosexuality.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone denied celibacy was to blame for the sex scandals that have rocked the Roman Catholic Church.

Instead, homosexuality and paedophilia were inextricably linked, the Vatican's Secretary of State declared.

His comments embroiled the Vatican in another controversy yesterday, with gay rights campaigners saying there was no connection between the two.

Cardinal Bertone made his comments at a press conference in Chile in response to a question about a paedophile priest who had sex with girls, including one who became pregnant. The Chilean priest was eventually jailed for 12 years.

The cardinal said: 'Many psychologists and psychiatrists have demonstrated that there is no relation between celibacy and paedophilia.

'But many others have demonstrated, I have been told recently, that there is a relation between homosexuality and paedophilia. That is true. That is the problem.'

Gay activists have already started formulating a plan of outrage.