Pope Francis rejects German cardinal's resignation, urges reform

Pope Francis refused Thursday to let German Cardinal Reinhard Marx resign over the sex abuse scandal in the church, but said a process of reform was necessary and that every bishop must take responsibility for the “catastrophe” of the crisis.

Francis refused to accept the resignation and told Marx in the letter he must continue as archbishop and "shepherd my sheep." Francis said what was necessary instead was a process of reform "that doesn’t consist in words but attitudes that have the courage of putting oneself in crisis, of assuming reality regardless of the consequences."