BishopAccountability.org
	Irish Response to the Pope's Letter By Breda O'Brien Guardian March 22, 2010 http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2010/mar/22/pope-letter-ireland-abuse Last week, it was revealed that the head of the Irish Roman Catholic church, Cardinal Sean Brady, had as a young priest taken statements from two boys abused by notorious paedophile priest Brendan Smyth. While Brady acted swiftly, and within weeks his bishop had removed the right to practise as a priest from Smyth, the fact that Brady had not reported the case to the police, and had demanded an oath of secrecy from the boys, was seen as a possible case for resignation 35 years later. In that atmosphere, expectations for the pope's pastoral letter to Ireland were low. Some abuse survivors, notably Christine Buckley of the Aislinn Centre, had written it off before it appeared. Somewhat surprisingly, the pope's letter was welcomed by some survivors as an "overdue but emotional apology", and in general, was received reasonably well by church-going Catholics. Extracts from the pope's letter were read at all masses. The first group addressed in the letter was the victims of abuse and their families. "You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry. Your trust has been betrayed and your dignity violated." Pope Benedict acknowledged that when many survivors spoke out about what happened to them, no one would listen. He said it was understandable if they find it hard to even to cross the door of the church. He expressed shame and remorse, and his readiness to meet victims of sexual abuse in the future, as he has done elsewhere, in the US and Australia. He was particularly tough on abusive clergy. "You betrayed the trust that was placed in you by innocent young people and their parents, and you must answer for it before Almighty God." He said that they must also be accountable to the processes of civil and canon law. He told them that their crimes brought shame, dishonour and damage to the church. He told bishops to admit "that grave errors of judgment were made and failures of leadership occurred" which have seriously undermined credibility and effectiveness. He emphasised the importance of continuing to "co-operate with the civil authorities". This was important, given that there is now no wriggle room for not reporting crimes. He insisted that child protection policies should be fully applied and regularly updated. He announced an apostolic visitation of some dioceses, of seminaries and of religious congregations. This is an inspection team from the Vatican, and is seen as a sign of the Vatican's continued oversight of the problem. Some victim advocacy organisations were scathing. Maeve Lewis, of One in Four, said that while she welcomed the instruction to co-operate with civil authorities, the letter fell "far short" of what was needed. Others criticised the lack of reference to the Vatican's own responsibility. Mary Raftery, a journalist who has made ground breaking documentaries on abuse, called on all the bishops to resign. Andrew Madden, a prominent abuse survivor, called on the pope to resign. In contrast, Irish Soca, an organisation representing victims of institutional abuse, said the letter contained "an unambiguous acknowledgment that the Irish Catholic church sinned most grievously against the young over many decades". The group said it was heartened by Benedict's open acceptance that the abusive behaviour by priests constituted a criminal act and that those who abused children should submit themselves "to the demands of justice". Archbishop Martin of Dublin, recognised by all sides as an important force for change, emphasised that it was but one step in a process, and that it "is not a commentary (on) or guidelines about the management of sexual abuse". He also said that "The truth must come out; without the truth we will never be truly free." If Benedict's injunctions and those of Archbishop Martin are heeded, ultimately this letter, although not without its trenchant critics, may be seen as a positive turning point in the turbulent history of how the church in Ireland has dealt with child abuse.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.