Protect Our Little Ones, by Father Brian D'Arcy, Sunday World, September 11, 2011

Protect Our "Little Ones"

By Father Brian D'Arcy
Sunday World
September 11, 2011

http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/father-brian.php?aid=8667

WRONGS: Fr Brendan Smyth

I COULD fill the paper, never mind this page, with thoughtful letters about religion in Ireland. There are hosts of concerned and articulate people whose valid opinions I try to reflect.

Here's a letter which I had to edit to fit the space. I know you'll understand where this mature Catholic is coming from.

"Dear Fr Brian,

I'm sure you watched the programme on Fr Brendan Smyth: 'Betrayal of Trust'.

There are so many issues of trust, Godliness, humanity, about not only Brendan Smyth but also the priests and religious around him.

I must say you have always been positive and with your feet on the ground with your thoughts, which you express with clarity.

I am a catholic for over 50 years; that's a very long commitment in anybody's book! In the 60's & 70's we looked on the priests, and certainly the church, as some type of moral foundation stone.

Now we find out that the very servants God has divinely ordained can do satanic deeds on the most vulnerable.

If God is all merciful and all benevolent how did he allow this to go on? I suppose we just call it a mystery again.

I can barely accept Smyth was evil and somehow became a priest. But to realise the lack of action of learned leaders is impossible to reconcile with impassioned pleas throughout the years to do good works / be Christian to others / forgive evil men etc.

Were they being cynical or what? How does this change our relationship with God himself? Have we no one now to tell us how to get to heaven or is this a case of "listen to our words but ignore our deeds?"

When I was about 11 yrs old I saw an adult hitting a young child.That often happened 40 years ago but I knew it was wrong.

The child would not do what the adult wanted and he got slapped. Both the adult and child displayed stubbornness but the slapping was wrong in its force or, more correctly, its zeal. I pleaded for it to be stopped but to no avail.

Others around respected the adult and did not get involved. I couldn't put up with it so I ran away out of frustration.

If I could see something wrong at 11 and do all I could why did the church not act to prevent such evil? Is the church not able to protect the "little ones" Christ spoke so passionately about?

Forgiveness

Members of the church were told officially and would have heard through the clerical grapevine. Why was it so difficult to stop Smyth (as an example)?

I realise the 40's, 50's and 60's may have been different but the 70's & 80's?

The church is often cited as an institution with intellectual leaders and clever theologians etc. I think they are nothing if they can't look after not only its own, but its future members.

How can the church preach about turning the other cheek, forgive 77 times 7 if it can't stop its own doing evil deeds to the innocent?

Is the only answer that once a priest acts outside of his clerical duties then it's not the responsibility of the church?

I hear sermons from the pulpit about being Christian and caring for the less well off and about forgiveness etc. The first part of forgiveness is about stopping the wrong.

Encouraging

The world is in need of a moral leader and the church has the ability but has lost our trust. It looks like when it involves its own members there is no such thing as truth & justice.

It seems that some catholic clerics must give first allegiance to the church and not to Christ and certainly not to the faithful.

That seems to contradict all that I understood about the church's role. So if I am confused, what can be expected of people who have lost their religion before this?

I wish you good luck. You always come across as encouraging the spirit of people.

People, religious or not, like what you do & how you do it. You do more for people's faith & spirituality than any encyclical.

Thank you for being you."