AUSTRALIA
Christian Today
Carey Lodge CHRISTIAN TODAY JOURNALIST 10 August 2016
An Australian bishop was reduced to tears over having to defrock a priest accused of sexual abuse because he was worried about the “effect it would have on the parishioners”, a royal commission has heard.
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse is currently hearing evidence from an abuse survivor identified only as CKH. He described his abuse as “a gross abuse of trust, selfish and thoughtless.”
He told the committee hearing that after a church body investigated his allegations against a number of clergy, including the former Dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence, it was recommended that Lawrence and two others, church deacon Andrew Duncan and priests Bruce Hoare, be defrocked.
However, CKH said then Bishop Brian Farran visited him in 2012 and cried over the situation.
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