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Calling the church sex abuse scandal a "leprosy in our house," Pope Francis tells an Italian newspaper that 1 in 50 Catholic clerics are pedophiles.

In an interview with Eugenio Scalfari, the 90-year-old founder of La Repubblica, Francis is quoted as saying that advisers in the Church "reassure me" that the problem amounts to "about 2 percent."

"This data should hearten me but I have to tell you that it does not hearten me at all. In fact, I think that it is very grave," he was quoted by the newspaper as saying, according to a translation used by Reuters.

Most pedophilia takes place in family situations, but "even we have this leprosy in our house" he is quoted as saying of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Church must "weep and make reparation" for its crimes, he is quoted as saying.

Scalfari also quotes Francis as noting that the requirement of celibacy in the priesthood is a "problem," and that "there are solutions and I will find them."

The pope said that celibacy was instituted "900 years after Our Lord's death" and that in some Eastern Churches under the Vatican's purview, priests were already allowed to marry.

Reuters says the La Repubblica article was a reconstruction of an hour-long conversation between the pope and Scalfari,

The Vatican, in a statement said that Scalfari — the country's best-known journalist who is also a prominent atheist — normally conducts long interviews with public figures without taking notes, quoting them later from memory.

Papal spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said that the quote on celibacy, as well as another in which Francis says cardinals were among the sex abusers, are inaccurate. Lombardi accused La Repubblica of trying to "manipulate naive readers," according to Reuters.

NPR's Sylvia Poggioli, reporting from Rome, notes, "This is not the first time Francis' off-the-cuff remarks have caused problems for his spokespeople."

Indeed, Francis has called atheists "precious allies" in building peace and even suggested that non-believers could go to heaven, a position his Vatican handlers quickly sought to clarify.

A few months later, in a discussion of homosexuality in the Church, Francis proclaimed: "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?"

And, despite the Vatican's suggestion that the pope's comments on celibacy are not accurately quoted, they are largely in line with a message transmitted by the Vatican's secretary of state, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, in September.

Half a world away, Chris Bosh could not escape the frenzy of last week.

An offer from the Houston Rockets was waiting. His longtime Miami teammate LeBron James was leaving. For a few moments, Bosh found himself wondering if his days with the Heat were over.

Then he looked at his family, and everything stopped.

"We've built a life in South Florida and we're comfortable," Bosh said Sunday. "So I had to do what's best now for myself and my family."

With that, his decision became very easy. Bosh will sign a $118 million, five-year deal to stay with the Heat, a formality only held up by the logistical challenge presented by him being in Ghana right now and with more exotic stops on a family vacation still to come before returning home.

When he finally puts pen to paper, the Heat locker room will essentially become his — and in an interview with The Associated Press, Bosh said that while it's a shock to realize James is no longer with Miami after four seasons, he's ready to have that voice.

"I can't lie to you: I'm excited. I'm excited for the challenge," Bosh said during a break from NBA Africa duties. "I want to step up to the challenge. I feel this is a chance to prove to myself and others that I can still do this.

"I want to see if I can do what's necessary to go in there and win every night. That's the challenge of being a leader. It excites me. It's been a long time and I feel like I'm a much better player and a leader now, so it'll be fun."

Bosh had that role in Toronto before coming to Miami, then was perceived as a No. 3 behind James and Dwyane Wade when they teamed up in 2010 to begin the "Big 3" era with the Heat.

Now, Bosh will be one of the league's highest-paid players over the next five seasons, and with that comes a responsibility role to lead.

"It's a very different process," Bosh said, "but I think I know how to do it."

The Heat called James' decision disappointing, and Bosh acknowledged that there was a "shock factor" when he heard, but Miami is moving on.

They've locked Bosh up, are closing in on a new deal with Wade, got a commitment Sunday from small forward Luol Deng, are talking about retaining point guard Mario Chalmers and have deals pending with forwards Josh McRoberts and Danny Granger.

Miami has been to the NBA Finals in each of Bosh's first four seasons there, the team's two-year run as champions coming to an end when the Heat lost in five games to San Antonio last month.

Bosh got over that loss fast.

"We weren't going to beat those guys," Bosh said. "They were clicking on all cylinders. ... You can accept losing to such a great team."

After that, free agency followed. Bosh, Wade and James met last month for lunch, one that created tons of speculation once word got out about the meal.

Bosh said much of what was reported was overblown, and that was the day he started thinking the run was over.

"It's not what everybody thought it was," Bosh said. "We were just talking and having lunch with each other. Did I expect to kind of figure things out? Yeah, for sure. But it wasn't that. We just enjoyed having lunch. That's when I could tell, there's a possibility that somebody could be in a different uniform next year."

Soon, the Rockets came calling. Their pitch: Come to Houston, join Dwight Howard and James Harden and keep contending for titles.

"I'd be lying if I sat here and said Houston wasn't enticing," Bosh said. "You look at their roster and you can kind of see why it makes sense for them to be interested in me, with the chance they have to be successful. They're going to be a good team regardless next year. It just seemed like I would be that final piece that they needed. It was a hard choice to turn down."

Bosh insists the Heat will be good next season. How good, that will largely be up to him.

"We have so much chemistry," Bosh said. "We'll just be continuing without LeBron. It's starting a different chapter. It's exciting. I think it should be motivation for everybody to step up to the plate. We're fortunate enough to have some of the same guys. We should be able to say, 'Hey, we can come out here and compete no matter what happens.'"

LONDON (AP) — It takes two to tango — but does a same-sex couple qualify?

Britain's governing body of ballroom dancing has stirred controversy by proposing to change the definition of a competing partnership to be "one man and one lady" — a move that equality advocates and same-sex dancers called discriminatory Friday.

The world of competitive ballroom dancing — satirized famously in Baz Luhrmann's film "Strictly Ballroom" — has traditionally been dominated by couples made up of a man and a woman, although a small number of same-sex dancers currently also compete alongside them.

Critics say the rule change proposed by the British Dance Council could ban same-sex couples from mainstream competitions.

The changes were proposed following complaints that all-male couples are physically stronger and have better stamina than mixed-sex couples.

"We're looking to regulate the situation, as there is nothing in the rules at the moment," said Bryan Allen, the body's president.

But dancers argue they should be judged by their dancing, not their gender.

Sergio Brilhante, a former professional who competed with a male partner, said the argument that men are stronger than women may work for sports like tennis but does not apply to dance — and it certainly does not apply to all-female couples.

"Dance is about technique and choreography, about moving well on the floor," he said. "People didn't react very well in the beginning, but after some judges saw us more than once, they came to understand we just dance like any other competitor."

The dance council insists it does not discriminate, and that same-sex couples could still take part in some competitions should the body vote to approve the rule change.

But Brilhante says there are very few events catering to same-sex dancers, and they are not as prestigious as the mainstream competitions.