Retired Pope Benedict XVI has published a letter which blames clerical sex abuse on the "all-out sexual freedom" of the 1960s, reports BBC News.

He said that cultural and historical change had led to a "dissolution" of morality in Catholicism.

The sexual revolution in the 1960s had led to homosexuality and paedophilia in Catholic establishments, he claimed.

The only solution to the problem, the former Pope said, was "obedience and love for our Lord Jesus Christ".

It is rare for Pope Benedict, who in 2013 was the first to resign in almost 600 years, to intervene in clerical matters.

He had been accused of failing to protect children and suppressing investigations, allegations he denied.