Pope Apologizes to Irish Abuse Victims in Letter, CTV, March 20, 2010

Pope Apologizes to Irish Abuse Victims in Letter

CTV
March 20, 2010

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20100320/pope_letter_100320/20100320

[with video]

CANADA -- In a letter to the Irish faithful, Pope Benedict XVI apologized Saturday to victims of sexual and child abuse by Catholic priests in Ireland.

Addressing the victims of abuse and their families, the Pope acknowledged there was no way to undo their suffering.

"You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry," he said. "I know that nothing can undo the wrong that you have endured.

Pope Benedict XVI delivers his blessing during a general audience in St. Peter's square at the Vatican, on Wednesday, March 17, 2010.
Photo by Andrew Medichini

"It is understandable that you find it hard to forgive or be reconciled with the Church," he said. "In her name, I openly express the shame and remorse that we all feel."

In the letter, released across Europe during a growing sex scandal that involves several nations, there was no mention of any Vatican responsibility for the events. Specific punishments for bishops who are blamed by both victims and Irish government reports for covering up the years of abuse were also absent from the letter.

A Roman Catholic listens as the Primate of All Ireland Cardinal Sean Brady reads out a letter from the Pope to worshippers at St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh, Northern Ireland, Saturday, March, 20, 2010.
Photo by Peter Morrison

In the letter, Benedict rebuked the Irish bishops for "grave errors of judgment and failures of leadership" that undermined the bishops' credibility and effectiveness.

"It cannot be denied that some of you and your predecessors failed, at times grievously, to apply the long-established norms of canon law to the crime of child abuse," he said. "Serious mistakes were made in responding to allegations. I recognize how difficult it was to grasp the extent and complexity of the problem, to obtain reliable information and to make the right decisions in the light of conflicting expert advice."

Primate of All Ireland Cardinal Sean Brady hands out a letter from the Pope to worshippers, at St Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh, Northern Ireland, on Saturday, March, 20, 2010.
Photo by Peter Morrison

When asked why the letter contained no provisions for punishment, Vatican spokesperson Rev. Franco Lombardi said the letter was pastoral in nature, not administrative or disciplinary.

One in Four, Ireland's main group representing church abuse victims, said it was extremely disappointed with the letter because of its failure to blame the Vatican for what it called "a deliberate policy of the Catholic Church at the highest levels to protect sex offenders, thereby endangering children."

"If the church cannot acknowledge this fundamental truth, it is still in denial," the group said.

Before he became Pope and while he was a cardinal at the Vatican, Joseph Ratzinger wrote a letter instructing bishops around the world to report all cases of abuse to his office and keep them secret under the threat of excommunication. Irish bishops have said the letter was understood to mean they shouldn't report cases of abuse to police.

Benedict began writing the letter last month, when he called Irish bishops to the Vatican to discuss the Church's handling of the growing crisis.

Three investigations ordered by the Irish government that released their findings earlier this year found widespread child abuse and cover-ups among church leaders dating as far back as the 1930s right up to the 1990s. The cases involve more than 15,000 children.

While several bishops have resigned in the wake of the investigations, others have refused. The Pope has also refused the resignation offers of three bishops who have been linked to abuse cover-ups in Dublin.

The letter is addressed to the Catholics of Ireland, but the Vatican said it could be read as applying to other countries.

Since the completion of the investigations in Ireland, allegations of abuse have come out of five other European countries, including Benedict's native Germany.

More than 300 former students of Catholic institutions in Germany have come forward to say they had been physically or sexually abused.

Some of the most damning allegations have come from a school linked to the Regensburger Domspatzen boys' choir, which was led for 30 years by the Pope's brother, the Rev. Georg Ratzinger.

Halifax drafts new rules

Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of Halifax and the Diocese of Yarmouth have moved to try to prevent future cases of abuse from occurring.

The regions will adopt a nine-point protocol called the Covenant of Care, which will be signed by all staff, from priests down to caretakers. Key rules include a pledge to not abuse or endanger people under the care of the church.

Some of the rules go so far as to limit staff alone time with certain individuals.

The move comes after former bishop Raymond Lahey was charged in September with possessing and importing child pornography.

According to Marilyn Sweet, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Halifax, the new rules have been in the works for about 18 months.

According to the protocols, staff and volunteers are forbidden from photographing children, youths and vulnerable adults if they are unclothed or undressing.

They must also refrain from providing them with alcohol, tobacco or illegal drugs.