Pope says Church 'spared no effort' to fight abuse recently

Pope Francis speaks with the media onboard a plane during his flight back from Tallinn after the final leg of his visit to the Baltic states, Estonia September 25, 2018. REUTERS/Max Rossi

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (Reuters) - Pope Francis, facing clergy sex abuse scandals in several countries, said on Tuesday that the Roman Catholic Church has "spared no effort" to tackle the problem in recent years.

But, speaking to reporters aboard the papal plane while returning from a four-day trip to the Baltics, the pope again appeared to indirectly acknowledge that the Church had hidden sexual abuse "in the past century," saying that such cover-ups had been common in families as well.