Pope To Meet With U.S. Church Leaders Over Clergy Sex Abuse

Pope Francis will meet at the Vatican with leaders of the U.S. Catholic Church, including the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, to discuss clergy sexual abuse

Andrew Medichini / AP

Updated at 9 p.m. ET

After weeks of relative silence, Pope Francis has agreed to meet a delegation of U.S. bishops and cardinals to discuss the Vatican response to the clergy abuse crisis.

A Vatican spokesman says the meeting at the Apostolic Palace on Thursday will include Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, who leads the U.S. Conference of Bishops, and Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, who advises the pope on sex abuse issues. Archbishop Jose Gomez, vice president of the bishops’ conference, and Monsignor Brian Bransfield, the conference secretary, will also attend, according to the Vatican.