The Roman Catholic Church has issued guidance for future priests to have psychological tests to weed out those unable to control their sexual urges.

A senior churchman said a series of sex scandals had contributed to the rewriting of the guidelines.

The authors said screening would help avoid "tragic situations" caused by what they termed psychological defects.

The guidance says the voluntary tests should also aim to vet for those with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies".

Among other traits that might make a candidate unsuitable for the priesthood, the advice lists "uncertain sexual identity," "excessive rigidity of character" and "strong affective dependencies".

The document also makes reference to heterosexual urges.

Seminarians should be barred if testing makes it "evident the candidate has difficulty living in celibacy: That is, if celibacy for him is lived as a burden so heavy that it compromises his affective and relational equilibrium", it says.

The advice stipulates priests must have a "positive and stable sense of one's masculine identity".

The document, approved by Pope Benedict XVI and made public on Thursday, stresses that the screening must always have the candidate's consent.

The Catholic Church has been rocked by a series of sex scandals in recent years involving paedophile priests, notably in the US, Latin America and Europe, triggering lawsuits that have cost hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements.

And a seminary in Austria was shut down in August 2004 after revelations that students openly indulged in homosexual conduct.

Gay rights groups have accused the Church of using homosexuals as scapegoats for abuse scandals.

The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP), a US-based group of victims of sexual abuse, said the revised guidelines did not go far enough.

"Catholic officials continue to fixate on the offenders and ignore the larger problem: The Church's virtually unchanged culture of secrecy and unchecked power in the hierarchy," it said in a statement.

"These broader factors are deeply rooted in the Church and contribute heavily to extensive and ongoing clergy sex abuse and cover up." >>>> 

Pope sorry for priests' sex abuse

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Pope Benedict XVI has told Australians he is deeply sorry for the sexual abuse of children by some Catholic priests.

Speaking at a gathering of bishops in Sydney, the Pope spoke of the "shame we have all felt" and called for abusers to face justice.

A campaign group criticised the speech, saying the Pope should have met some victims to apologise in person.

The Pope was speaking as thousands of Catholic pilgrims began gathering for a candlelit prayer vigil in Sydney.

The pontiff will lead the vigil at the city's Royal Randwick Racecourse.

The Pope is in Australia to mark World Youth Day, which is drawing Catholics from around the world to the country.

Mixed response

Speaking earlier at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, he said: "I am deeply sorry for the pain and suffering the victims have endured.

"These misdeeds, which constitute so grave a betrayal of trust, deserve unequivocal condemnation.

"Those responsible for these evils must be brought to justice," the Pope said.

Former victim John McNally said he accepted the apology - although the abuse had long-lasting effects.

"It didn't just happen 40 years ago, as in my case," he said.

"I re-live it day-after-day, and victims re-live their trauma day-after-day. They need constant care with dignity, and the Church has never provided care with dignity."

Anthony Foster, the father of two Australian girls who were raped by a Catholic priest, said: "He [the Pope] didn't settle the issue we're very concerned about - the issue of him taking direct responsibility to ensure that all the archdioceses provide practical unlimited help to the victims of the Catholic Church."

Daniel Bidinger, a 25-year-old German pilgrim in Sydney, said the Pope's apology was " a good gesture".

"The church should be open about it and shouldn't cover up these incidents," he told the AP.

Broken Rites, which had wanted the Pope to meet some of the victims in person, said the pontiff's apology "is not enough".

"Victims want action, not just words," the group said in a statement.

Broken Rites says there have been 107 convictions against Catholic clergymen on sex charges in Australia. But the campaigners estimate the number of victims to be in the thousands.

There was no immediate confirmation of whether the Pope would meet abuse victims - as he did during a US trip in April, when he also expressed shame for the scandal.

The BBC's Nick Bryant, in Sydney, says victims have complained that the Church in Australia has tried to stall compensation claims and cover up certain cases.

On Saturday, several hundred protesters rallied in Sydney against the Pope's opposition to homosexuality and contraception.

Police said there were minor scuffles as some of the demonstrators pelted Catholic pilgrims with condoms. >>>>