Pope Benedict XVI focused on his church's future Saturday, rallying young people in New York, and telling priests and nuns that he would support them as the church recovers from the clergy sex abuse scandal.
The pontiff also spoke very personally, speaking of his suffering under Nazism in his youth and touched on his own "spiritual poverty."
He added that he hoped he would be a worthy successor to St. Peter, who is considered the first pope.
The pope was treated like a rock star at the 25,000 attending the youth rally he spoke at Saturday. The crowd burst into wild cheers as he entered onto the stage.
The youngsters even sang "Happy Birthday" to him, in his native German -- the pope turned 81 on Wednesday.
Several times on Saturday the pope pointed out that America seems to be hungrier for religion than what he has seen in Europe.
Benedict has made it a mission to turn around what sees as an increasingly secular world, with the U.S. serving as a testing ground.
Abuse scandal
Benedict spoke once again of the clergy sex abuse scandal Saturday as he preached in New York's St. Patrick's cathedral in the morning.
As he addressed about 3,000 people, mostly clergy, he called the present a time for purification and healing.
"I simply wish to assure you, dear priests and religious, of my spiritual closeness as you strive to respond with Christian hope to the continuing challenges that this situation presents," Benedict said.
Saturday was the third anniversary of Benedict's election as pope and his audience included notable cardinals and bishops, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Benedict also blessed the Fifth Avenue gothic cathedral with holy water before making his way to the church's alter. When he walked down the centre aisle, nuns clutched at his robes, showing a growing enthusiasm for the pope who replaced the popular Pope John Paul II.
It's been a busy week for the pope since he arrived Tuesday in the U.S. He met with President George W. Bush at the White House Wednesday and spoke to the U.N. General Assembly on Friday. But those meeting have been overshadowed by the pope's concentration on the abuse scandal.
David Price, a sex abuse survivor, spoke to 麻豆影视net Saturday and said the pope still has a long way to go for the healing of the church's abuse victims.
Price was molested for four years by his principal during his time at a Catholic high school in California.
In 1994, he came forward to the clergy looking for an apology, but was met with a denial.
He filed a suit against the church, which has since been settled, but not before the church counter-sued him.
"Now they have settled but it took 13 years to get completion with it," Price said.
On Thursday, Benedict prayed with abuse victims from Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley's archdiocese.
Papal spokesperson, the Rev. Federico Lombardi said that Benedict and O'Malley met with a group of five or six abuse victims. The group who met with the pope were all adults, who had been molested when they were minors.
Price said that Benedict was involved in overlooking the sex abuse cases when he was a cardinal under Pope John Paul II.
"If he truly was involved for 25 years (in looking into sex abuse cases) before becoming pontiff, that's a long time coming with what he has done," Price said.
"The meeting with the other survivors that also is a long time coming and yet, in my opinion, there are a lot of other meetings he needs to have.
"It's not just survivors who are affected, it's there entire families, their entire love circles . . . it's an epidemic."
On Sunday, the final day of his trip, he will visit Ground Zero and hold mass at Yankee Stadium.
With files from The Associated Press
