The Telegraph
July 25, 2011
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| Mr Kenny said the role of the Church in refusing to act was unacceptable |
Enda Kenny, the prime minister, last week issued forthright and personal criticism of Pope Benedict XVI following publication of the Cloyne report into cases of abuse in one Roman Catholic diocese.
Dublin has pressed the Vatican for a swift response to charges that its bishops suppressed or took no interest in reports of sexual abuse. The report, Mr Kenny said "excavates the dysfunction, the disconnection, the elitism that dominates the Vatican today".
Having initially called for an "objective" debate on the report, the Vatican on Monday moved to address Irish anger by recalling Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza, the Papal Nuncio.
"The recalling of the Nuncio, a measure rarely used by the Holy See, denotes the seriousness of the situation, and the desire of the Holy See to deal with it (with) objectivity and with determination, as well as a certain note of surprise and regret regarding some excessive reactions," spokesman, Fr Ciro Benedettini said.
Mr Kenny threw off generations of official Irish obsequiousness to the Vatican in a speech to parliament on the publication of the report.
The Vatican became embroiled in the latest Irish church scandal after revelations about a 1997 letter, from the then Papal Nuncio to Irish bishops, a year after reporting guidelines were enforced to enhance child protection.
The correspondence stated that the bishops policy was "merely a discussion document" and that the Vatican had serious moral and canon reservations about mandatory reporting of clerical abuse.
Mr Kenny said the role of the Church in refusing to act was unacceptable. He said: "The rape and torture of children were downplayed or 'managed' to uphold instead, the primacy of the institution, its power, standing and 'reputation'," he said. "For the first time in Ireland, a report into child sexual abuse exposes an attempt by the Holy See to frustrate an inquiry in a sovereign, democratic republic as little as three years ago, not three decades ago,"
Speaking at the weekend, Mr Kenny said he had been inundated by messages of support, including from priests.
"I just wanted people to understand that, when I say we live in a republic with laws and responsibilities and rights, I mean it. The fact that I have had thousands of messages from around the world speaks for itself about the impact and the way people feel.
"The numbers of members of the clergy who have been in touch in the last few days, to say it is about time somebody spoke out about these matters in a situation like you are, has astounded me," Mr Kenny said.
"I haven't made any other comment except to say that we await the response from the Vatican."
Roman Catholic priests enjoyed untrammelled power from Irish independence in the 1920s until thousands of men and women came forward in the 1990s with accusations of rape and molestation. In many cases the abuses were not reported to the police. When reports were made, the police refused to act, fearful of taking on a body that politicians courted.
Eamon Gilmore, the Irish foreign minister, welcomed the decision to recall Archbishop Leanza, saying he hoped it would hasten a swift response.
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