Will the repentance service on Sunday in Port Hawkesbury signify case closed to the abuse scandal as it applies to the Diocese of Antigonish?

It was to be a reconciliation service when it all began quite a few months ago, but those attending any of the seven meetings held to prepare for such a service heard quite a bit of anger expressed by parishioners as to how the scandal had impacted on their lives.

Some thought any such service would merely keep open the wound the abuse scandal had inflicted on the world, and especially on our diocese. For them, it was time to move on. And, in fact, many were trying to do just that in their home parishes.

At the time, many were upset at new security requirements for anyone working with children in their parishes, despite some having been involved in those ministries for years. In fact, anyone wishing to donate their time and energy to assisting in any way in their various parishes faced security checks.

Church closures were blamed on the fact that money was confiscated and used for abuse compensation; leaving a shortfall for churches needing maintain their buildings and programs. The fact that church closures have been on the books for more than 30 years cut no ice with those faced with the loss of their worship space.

The sad truth is that the abuse victims, who declined to participate in the sessions, were mostly overlooked in the midst of anger expressed at what many who attended these sessions perceived as wrongs inflicted on themselves.

One assumes that a lack of desire for any public reconciliation by the abused, in addition to the mediocre response by those in the pews, led to a complete overhaul of the initial plan. It became instead a service of repentance, a change that is not going down very well with many parishioners in the diocese who quite rightly ask themselves: “Why do I have to repent for something I didn't do?”

Other than parishioners who may have been aware of certain clergy's tendencies toward abuse (and there probably were parishioners who did know and said a silent prayer when a certain clergyman was removed and sent along to another parish), parishioners were for the most part totally unaware of what was transpiring among them.

At least since Vatican II, members of the laity have been told that “we are the church.” It would seem that in that capacity — seldom recognized by the hierarchy — we, “the church,” are called on to repent for the sins of our clergy, bishops and popes.

Innocent clergy and innocent parishioners are being asked to join the bishop in a public display of repentance, again without the presence of any of the abuse victims from the diocese whom one would assume have no heart for such a performance.

No doubt, certain parishioners will be designated hitters for the rest of us who will probably pass on this one. The clergy will be expected (ordered) to attend. And apparently there will be a special speaker who will address the abuse problem from a personal point of view.

Some will suggest that, at the least, a service of repentance indicates recognition of an evil perpetrated on the most vulnerable of the church's members by those placed in positions of trust.

However, there will be no quick fix for the church's worst scandal in years. That's attested to by the fact that Pope Francis continues to have questions posed to him, most recently on his flight back from the Holy Land, as to exactly what his plans are to acknowledge the scandal and, as the saying goes, “take ownership” of it.

Very few accept that the Vatican doesn't control cardinals and bishops. The fact that Pope Francis recently said there are three bishops under investigation — although he would not indicate what punishment might befall them — would indicate that in his heart of hearts, he knows the whole fiasco is tied to the church now and forever. Amen.

Dolores Campbell of Sydney is a lifelong Catholic. She is retired from a 30-year career as a parish secretary for two Sydney parishes.