ANALYSIS: SOME OF the words used by Pope Benedict XVI yesterday on clerical child sex abuse in the Irish church have a familiar ring: “outrage”, “betrayal”, “shame”, “deeply disturbed”, “distressed”, “profound regret”, “heinous crimes”, “traumatic events” and “shameful events”.
On October 28th, 2006, when Ireland’s Catholic bishops visited Rome, he used a similar vocabulary. Referring to the “many heart-rending cases of sexual abuse of minors” by priests in Ireland, he said “the wounds caused by such acts run deep, and it is an urgent task to rebuild confidence and trust where these have been damaged”.
He told them “it is important to establish the truth of what happened in the past, to take whatever steps are necessary to prevent it from occurring again, to ensure that the principles of justice are fully respected and, above all, to bring healing to the victims”.
Meanwhile, just the previous month, September 2006, the Murphy commission had written to the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, of which Pope Benedict had been head until April 2005, seeking information supplied to it from Ireland about incidents of clerical child sex abuse in the Dublin archdiocese. It did not respond to the commission.
However, there are indications that yesterday’s statement might be followed by more action. Probably the most significant line is: “The Holy Father intends to address a pastoral letter to the faithful of Ireland in which he will clearly indicate the initiatives that are to be taken in response to the situation.”
Such pastoral letters to a local church are rare in Vatican affairs and apply usually to emergency situations. Photo
As significant in yesterday’s statement was the preceding line: “The Holy See takes very seriously the central issues raised by the report, including questions concerning the governance of local church leaders with ultimate responsibility for the pastoral care of children.” Read complete article - by PATSY McGARRY – The Irish Times
Kids Are Being Hurt !!!
Statement by Benedict XVI December 2009
Kids Are Being Hurt !!!
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