"Ashamed" pope vows no more pedophile priests

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (Reuters) - Pope Benedict said on Tuesday he was "deeply ashamed" over sexual abuse by clergy in the United States and vowed to keep pedophiles out of the priesthood, as he began his first U.S. trip as pontiff. "We will absolutely exclude pedophiles from the sacred ministry," he told reporters accompanying him on his flight to the United States, adding "pedophiles cannot be priests". "We are deeply ashamed and will do whatever is possible so that this does not happen in the future," he said on board the plane to Washington. "Ashamed" pope vows no more pedophile priests