Independent.ie
Quitting bishop to meet Pope in Rome over abuse scandal
By John Cooney Religion Correspondent
Wednesday February 10 2010
THE outgoing Catholic Bishop of Kildare will be among a delegation of 24 diocesan bishops attending next week's summit talks at the Vatican with Pope Benedict on the child clerical abuse crisis.
Bishop Jim Moriarty offered to resign two months ago, and Pope Benedict's delay in accepting the resignation came under renewed criticism last night from victim Marie Collins.
Bishop Moriarty formerly served as an auxiliary bishop in the Dublin archdiocese which acknowledged collective responsibility for cover-ups.
Accepting Bishop Moriarty's sincerity, Ms Collins last night questioned why the Pope had delayed so long in confirming this resignation compared with how quickly he accepted the stepping-down of Donal Murray -- another Dublin auxiliary -- as Bishop of Limerick.
Ms Collins also called on Pope Benedict to demand the resignation of the embattled Bishop of Galway, Martin Drennan, for having been part of the church culture of cover-ups operating in the Dublin archdiocese when he was an auxiliary bishop there from 1997 to 2004.
Bishop Drennan, who was named in the Murphy Report, has become a divisive figure in the episcopal ranks after telling Archbishop Diarmuid Martin that he did no wrong and was not resigning.
Summit
"My hope is that Pope Benedict backs the position of Archbishop Martin," said Ms Collins. "If not, there will be no way forward to recovery for the Irish Church. It will be a disaster."
Meanwhile, the Irish Independent last night learned that the Irish Catholic Bishops have retreated to the west of Ireland to seek spiritual guidance ahead of next week's crisis showdown with Pope Benedict. The bishops, led by Cardinal Sean Brady and Archbishop Martin, gathered unannounced yesterday afternoon at the Marian Shrine in Knock, Co Mayo.
Last night, the spokesman for the Bishops' Conference, Martin Long, said the annual two-day retreat was arranged well in advance of the Rome summit. But informed senior church sources told the Irish Independent that the spiritual retreat was also being used by the bishops to prepare for the meeting.
Twenty-four of the 26 heads of dioceses will attend the unprecedented Rome summit.
But absent will be the former Bishop of Limerick, Donal Murray, whose resignation has already been accepted by Pope Benedict; and the former Bishop of Cloyne, John Magee, who last year was removed from office by the Pope after being found not to have applied agreed national child protection rules in his Cork diocese.
- John Cooney Religion Correspondent
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Priests are guilty by association for conforming to 'abuse system'
Priests are guilty by association for conforming to 'abuse system'
DEREK SMYTH
Tue, Feb 09, 2010
RITE & REASON: Why were we so silent on child abuse? Why didn’t we speak up?
IN ORDER to respond appropriately to those who were abused by priests, we need to explore clerical culture, since research attests that it does contribute to the promotion of immaturity, arrested development and irresponsibility.
For example, early research by Conrad Baars and Anna Terruwe on priesthood within western Europe and North America in 1971 revealed that only 10-15 per cent of priests were mature; 60-70 per cent suffered from a degree of emotional immaturity; and 20-25 per cent had serious psychiatric difficulties. Ironically, these findings were never acted on.
Culture is defined as a shared system of beliefs and values. It has within it a cognitive, emotional and behavioural dimension.
Clerical culture influences the way a priest or bishop may think about a certain issue, feel about it and respond to it. However, like any culture, its ills cannot be addressed solely from within. Think of Northern Ireland. It was with the support of outside sources, particularly George Mitchell, that the road towards peace began.
For clerical culture, new structures are not sufficient, as there appears to be an innate “abuse system” within this culture. Even though it may now be forced to address the issue of sexual abuse, “abuse” may rear its ugly face in other forms.
One disturbing aspect for me is what I call a “convenient silence”. Why were we so silent? Why didn’t we speak up?
It is also the question asked by the Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer of the churches during the second World War. Bonhoeffer came, like most of us, from one of the mainline churches. However, as a result of a visit to the storefront churches in New York he would be changed forever.
Here he witnessed the spirit-filled worship of African- Americans. He was deeply moved as he remembered how they were captured, tortured, enslaved and here they were full of passion and hope in contrast to the sedate and passive ritual of his own church.
Despite being asked to stay in the safety of New York, he felt he had to return home to confront the Nazi movement in Germany.
He joined the Resistance and eventually was captured and executed by the Nazis.
For Bonhoeffer, one big question was: “Why were the churches so silent?”
I have observed the same silence, as in my time I have witnessed theologians being marginalised as Vatican II has been dismantled, and as the innocent in Ireland were sexually abused by brother priests. I am also part of this silence.
What causes this muteness that allows evil to flourish? It is my belief that people of my generation were conditioned by the church to distrust themselves.
Take, for example, a non-Catholic neighbour who died 40 years ago.
His/her Catholic friends were unable to pray in church with his grieving family. For most people at the time, this didn’t make sense.
Their own integrity was telling them that it was absurd.
However, such personal thoughts and beliefs were dismissed even to the point that people considered them sinful. In other words, we distrusted our own integrity and conformed with the directions of the church. And since we were made keep our thoughts to ourselves, we remained silent.
This behaviour was reinforced in our seminary training. We were conditioned to surrender to the institution, to the teachings, structures and disciplines of the church. Upon ordination we made a promise of obedience to the local bishop, and even our own letter of acceptance of a diocesan post was scripted for us.
Think of the docility of priests. A new bishop is appointed to a diocese and he decides to change direction.
The priests follow until another incumbent arrives and they are ready to go again in whatever direction he decides.
Tragically, it is within this culture that the governance of the church takes place and we are all guilty by association. It may be convenient to suggest that the auxiliary bishops must step down, but surely it is more honest to ask all of our generation to step down, ensuring a new beginning for all.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr Derek Smyth is a priest in Foxrock parish, Co Dublin. Prior to that he had been director of Emmanuel House, Santa Ana, California, where he worked as a psychotherapist. He has co-authored two books, Being There and Defusing the Bomb
© 2010 The Irish Times
DEREK SMYTH
Tue, Feb 09, 2010
RITE & REASON: Why were we so silent on child abuse? Why didn’t we speak up?
IN ORDER to respond appropriately to those who were abused by priests, we need to explore clerical culture, since research attests that it does contribute to the promotion of immaturity, arrested development and irresponsibility.
For example, early research by Conrad Baars and Anna Terruwe on priesthood within western Europe and North America in 1971 revealed that only 10-15 per cent of priests were mature; 60-70 per cent suffered from a degree of emotional immaturity; and 20-25 per cent had serious psychiatric difficulties. Ironically, these findings were never acted on.
Culture is defined as a shared system of beliefs and values. It has within it a cognitive, emotional and behavioural dimension.
Clerical culture influences the way a priest or bishop may think about a certain issue, feel about it and respond to it. However, like any culture, its ills cannot be addressed solely from within. Think of Northern Ireland. It was with the support of outside sources, particularly George Mitchell, that the road towards peace began.
For clerical culture, new structures are not sufficient, as there appears to be an innate “abuse system” within this culture. Even though it may now be forced to address the issue of sexual abuse, “abuse” may rear its ugly face in other forms.
One disturbing aspect for me is what I call a “convenient silence”. Why were we so silent? Why didn’t we speak up?
It is also the question asked by the Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer of the churches during the second World War. Bonhoeffer came, like most of us, from one of the mainline churches. However, as a result of a visit to the storefront churches in New York he would be changed forever.
Here he witnessed the spirit-filled worship of African- Americans. He was deeply moved as he remembered how they were captured, tortured, enslaved and here they were full of passion and hope in contrast to the sedate and passive ritual of his own church.
Despite being asked to stay in the safety of New York, he felt he had to return home to confront the Nazi movement in Germany.
He joined the Resistance and eventually was captured and executed by the Nazis.
For Bonhoeffer, one big question was: “Why were the churches so silent?”
I have observed the same silence, as in my time I have witnessed theologians being marginalised as Vatican II has been dismantled, and as the innocent in Ireland were sexually abused by brother priests. I am also part of this silence.
What causes this muteness that allows evil to flourish? It is my belief that people of my generation were conditioned by the church to distrust themselves.
Take, for example, a non-Catholic neighbour who died 40 years ago.
His/her Catholic friends were unable to pray in church with his grieving family. For most people at the time, this didn’t make sense.
Their own integrity was telling them that it was absurd.
However, such personal thoughts and beliefs were dismissed even to the point that people considered them sinful. In other words, we distrusted our own integrity and conformed with the directions of the church. And since we were made keep our thoughts to ourselves, we remained silent.
This behaviour was reinforced in our seminary training. We were conditioned to surrender to the institution, to the teachings, structures and disciplines of the church. Upon ordination we made a promise of obedience to the local bishop, and even our own letter of acceptance of a diocesan post was scripted for us.
Think of the docility of priests. A new bishop is appointed to a diocese and he decides to change direction.
The priests follow until another incumbent arrives and they are ready to go again in whatever direction he decides.
Tragically, it is within this culture that the governance of the church takes place and we are all guilty by association. It may be convenient to suggest that the auxiliary bishops must step down, but surely it is more honest to ask all of our generation to step down, ensuring a new beginning for all.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr Derek Smyth is a priest in Foxrock parish, Co Dublin. Prior to that he had been director of Emmanuel House, Santa Ana, California, where he worked as a psychotherapist. He has co-authored two books, Being There and Defusing the Bomb
© 2010 The Irish Times
Abuse victims in plea to pope
Abuse victims in plea to pope
PATSY McGARRY Religious Affairs Correspondent and PADDY AGNEW
Tue, Feb 09, 2010
A letter has been sent to Pope Benedict by abuse victims in Dublin calling on him to remove the Bishop of Galway, Martin Drennan, as he “still refuses to accept any responsibility for his part in supporting a culture of cover up during his time in Dublin”.
It also urges the pope to accept “without any further delay” the offers of resignation from bishops James Moriarty, Eamonn Walsh and Raymond Field.
The letter, sent in advance of the pope’s planned meeting with the Irish bishops in Rome, is signed by victims of clerical abuse Andrew Madden and Marie Collins, as well as the executive director of One in Four, Maeve Lewis.
They say that “other bishops throughout Ireland who engaged in this culture of cover-up in their own dioceses should resign from their positions instead of waiting to see the extent to which they are criticised in any future reports should the commission of investigation be expanded to include their dioceses”.
Writing “to ensure that the voices of the survivors of abuse by Catholic priests have a place” in deliberations between Ireland’s bishops and Pope Benedict in Rome next week, they say that “survivors find it incomprehensible that the Vatican and your representative in Ireland, the Papal Nuncio, saw fit to hide behind diplomatic protocols to avoid co-operating with the Murphy commission.”
Pointing out that “responsibility for child protection properly rests with the civil authorities”, they asked the pope “to instruct the Irish bishops to comply fully with civil child protection guidelines, including the mandatory reporting of all concerns or complaints to the civil authorities for investigation”.
They have further asked him to write, in his forthcoming pastoral letter, “not only to Irish Catholics, but to all people of Ireland, accepting fully the harm that has been caused by the acts of omission and commission of the Catholic Church and its priests and bishops in Ireland”.
They asked this as “the lives of thousands of Irish people have been devastated by sexual abuse by priests”.
Separately, representatives of people abused as children in residential institutions run by religious orders had a meeting in Maynooth yesterday with representatives of the Irish Bishops’ Conference.
Afterwards Bishop John McAreavey said the “meeting was constructive and helpful to us as we prepare to meet the Holy Father next week . . . We intend to relay these concerns to Pope Benedict both verbally and in the form of written submissions which were presented to us today by survivors and which directly represent their views.”
In Rome yesterday Pope Benedict promised that the Catholic Church would never fail to “deplore and condemn” the abuse of children by priests. Speaking to delegates at the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, he said that throughout the centuries the church had “protected the dignity and rights of minors”.
He added: “Unfortunately in some cases, some of its [church] members, acting in contrast to this commitment, have violated these rights. This is a behaviour that the church has not and will not fail to deplore and condemn.”
© 2010 irishtimes.com
PATSY McGARRY Religious Affairs Correspondent and PADDY AGNEW
Tue, Feb 09, 2010
A letter has been sent to Pope Benedict by abuse victims in Dublin calling on him to remove the Bishop of Galway, Martin Drennan, as he “still refuses to accept any responsibility for his part in supporting a culture of cover up during his time in Dublin”.
It also urges the pope to accept “without any further delay” the offers of resignation from bishops James Moriarty, Eamonn Walsh and Raymond Field.
The letter, sent in advance of the pope’s planned meeting with the Irish bishops in Rome, is signed by victims of clerical abuse Andrew Madden and Marie Collins, as well as the executive director of One in Four, Maeve Lewis.
They say that “other bishops throughout Ireland who engaged in this culture of cover-up in their own dioceses should resign from their positions instead of waiting to see the extent to which they are criticised in any future reports should the commission of investigation be expanded to include their dioceses”.
Writing “to ensure that the voices of the survivors of abuse by Catholic priests have a place” in deliberations between Ireland’s bishops and Pope Benedict in Rome next week, they say that “survivors find it incomprehensible that the Vatican and your representative in Ireland, the Papal Nuncio, saw fit to hide behind diplomatic protocols to avoid co-operating with the Murphy commission.”
Pointing out that “responsibility for child protection properly rests with the civil authorities”, they asked the pope “to instruct the Irish bishops to comply fully with civil child protection guidelines, including the mandatory reporting of all concerns or complaints to the civil authorities for investigation”.
They have further asked him to write, in his forthcoming pastoral letter, “not only to Irish Catholics, but to all people of Ireland, accepting fully the harm that has been caused by the acts of omission and commission of the Catholic Church and its priests and bishops in Ireland”.
They asked this as “the lives of thousands of Irish people have been devastated by sexual abuse by priests”.
Separately, representatives of people abused as children in residential institutions run by religious orders had a meeting in Maynooth yesterday with representatives of the Irish Bishops’ Conference.
Afterwards Bishop John McAreavey said the “meeting was constructive and helpful to us as we prepare to meet the Holy Father next week . . . We intend to relay these concerns to Pope Benedict both verbally and in the form of written submissions which were presented to us today by survivors and which directly represent their views.”
In Rome yesterday Pope Benedict promised that the Catholic Church would never fail to “deplore and condemn” the abuse of children by priests. Speaking to delegates at the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, he said that throughout the centuries the church had “protected the dignity and rights of minors”.
He added: “Unfortunately in some cases, some of its [church] members, acting in contrast to this commitment, have violated these rights. This is a behaviour that the church has not and will not fail to deplore and condemn.”
© 2010 irishtimes.com
Abuse victims in plea to pope
Abuse victims in plea to pope
PATSY McGARRY Religious Affairs Correspondent and PADDY AGNEW
Tue, Feb 09, 2010
A letter has been sent to Pope Benedict by abuse victims in Dublin calling on him to remove the Bishop of Galway, Martin Drennan, as he “still refuses to accept any responsibility for his part in supporting a culture of cover up during his time in Dublin”.
It also urges the pope to accept “without any further delay” the offers of resignation from bishops James Moriarty, Eamonn Walsh and Raymond Field.
The letter, sent in advance of the pope’s planned meeting with the Irish bishops in Rome, is signed by victims of clerical abuse Andrew Madden and Marie Collins, as well as the executive director of One in Four, Maeve Lewis.
They say that “other bishops throughout Ireland who engaged in this culture of cover-up in their own dioceses should resign from their positions instead of waiting to see the extent to which they are criticised in any future reports should the commission of investigation be expanded to include their dioceses”.
Writing “to ensure that the voices of the survivors of abuse by Catholic priests have a place” in deliberations between Ireland’s bishops and Pope Benedict in Rome next week, they say that “survivors find it incomprehensible that the Vatican and your representative in Ireland, the Papal Nuncio, saw fit to hide behind diplomatic protocols to avoid co-operating with the Murphy commission.”
Pointing out that “responsibility for child protection properly rests with the civil authorities”, they asked the pope “to instruct the Irish bishops to comply fully with civil child protection guidelines, including the mandatory reporting of all concerns or complaints to the civil authorities for investigation”.
They have further asked him to write, in his forthcoming pastoral letter, “not only to Irish Catholics, but to all people of Ireland, accepting fully the harm that has been caused by the acts of omission and commission of the Catholic Church and its priests and bishops in Ireland”.
They asked this as “the lives of thousands of Irish people have been devastated by sexual abuse by priests”.
Separately, representatives of people abused as children in residential institutions run by religious orders had a meeting in Maynooth yesterday with representatives of the Irish Bishops’ Conference.
Afterwards Bishop John McAreavey said the “meeting was constructive and helpful to us as we prepare to meet the Holy Father next week . . . We intend to relay these concerns to Pope Benedict both verbally and in the form of written submissions which were presented to us today by survivors and which directly represent their views.”
In Rome yesterday Pope Benedict promised that the Catholic Church would never fail to “deplore and condemn” the abuse of children by priests. Speaking to delegates at the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, he said that throughout the centuries the church had “protected the dignity and rights of minors”.
He added: “Unfortunately in some cases, some of its [church] members, acting in contrast to this commitment, have violated these rights. This is a behaviour that the church has not and will not fail to deplore and condemn.”
© 2010 irishtimes.com
PATSY McGARRY Religious Affairs Correspondent and PADDY AGNEW
Tue, Feb 09, 2010
A letter has been sent to Pope Benedict by abuse victims in Dublin calling on him to remove the Bishop of Galway, Martin Drennan, as he “still refuses to accept any responsibility for his part in supporting a culture of cover up during his time in Dublin”.
It also urges the pope to accept “without any further delay” the offers of resignation from bishops James Moriarty, Eamonn Walsh and Raymond Field.
The letter, sent in advance of the pope’s planned meeting with the Irish bishops in Rome, is signed by victims of clerical abuse Andrew Madden and Marie Collins, as well as the executive director of One in Four, Maeve Lewis.
They say that “other bishops throughout Ireland who engaged in this culture of cover-up in their own dioceses should resign from their positions instead of waiting to see the extent to which they are criticised in any future reports should the commission of investigation be expanded to include their dioceses”.
Writing “to ensure that the voices of the survivors of abuse by Catholic priests have a place” in deliberations between Ireland’s bishops and Pope Benedict in Rome next week, they say that “survivors find it incomprehensible that the Vatican and your representative in Ireland, the Papal Nuncio, saw fit to hide behind diplomatic protocols to avoid co-operating with the Murphy commission.”
Pointing out that “responsibility for child protection properly rests with the civil authorities”, they asked the pope “to instruct the Irish bishops to comply fully with civil child protection guidelines, including the mandatory reporting of all concerns or complaints to the civil authorities for investigation”.
They have further asked him to write, in his forthcoming pastoral letter, “not only to Irish Catholics, but to all people of Ireland, accepting fully the harm that has been caused by the acts of omission and commission of the Catholic Church and its priests and bishops in Ireland”.
They asked this as “the lives of thousands of Irish people have been devastated by sexual abuse by priests”.
Separately, representatives of people abused as children in residential institutions run by religious orders had a meeting in Maynooth yesterday with representatives of the Irish Bishops’ Conference.
Afterwards Bishop John McAreavey said the “meeting was constructive and helpful to us as we prepare to meet the Holy Father next week . . . We intend to relay these concerns to Pope Benedict both verbally and in the form of written submissions which were presented to us today by survivors and which directly represent their views.”
In Rome yesterday Pope Benedict promised that the Catholic Church would never fail to “deplore and condemn” the abuse of children by priests. Speaking to delegates at the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, he said that throughout the centuries the church had “protected the dignity and rights of minors”.
He added: “Unfortunately in some cases, some of its [church] members, acting in contrast to this commitment, have violated these rights. This is a behaviour that the church has not and will not fail to deplore and condemn.”
© 2010 irishtimes.com
Prominent Brooklyn priest investigated for child pornography
Prominent Brooklyn priest investigated for child pornography
February 09, 2010
A prominent priest of the Diocese of Brooklyn has been placed on administrative leave after federal officials said he was under investigation for allegedly viewing Internet child pornography. Msgr. Michael Dempsey, 77, had served as the diocese’s executive director of pastoral communications since 1978.
February 09, 2010
A prominent priest of the Diocese of Brooklyn has been placed on administrative leave after federal officials said he was under investigation for allegedly viewing Internet child pornography. Msgr. Michael Dempsey, 77, had served as the diocese’s executive director of pastoral communications since 1978.
Irish abuse victims to ask Vatican for 1 billion euros
Irish abuse victims to ask Vatican for 1 billion euros
February 09, 2010
When the Irish hierarchy meets with Pope Benedict on February 15 and 16, Cardinal Seán Brady, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, will deliver a letter from representatives for abuse victims asking for one billion euros (approximately $1.37 billion) in compensation. Irish religious orders “paid just €128m of the total compensation bill of €1.2bn” following the Ryan report, notes the Irish Independent.
The victims’ representatives also requested that Pope Benedict meet with abuse victims during his September apostolic journey.
February 09, 2010
When the Irish hierarchy meets with Pope Benedict on February 15 and 16, Cardinal Seán Brady, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, will deliver a letter from representatives for abuse victims asking for one billion euros (approximately $1.37 billion) in compensation. Irish religious orders “paid just €128m of the total compensation bill of €1.2bn” following the Ryan report, notes the Irish Independent.
The victims’ representatives also requested that Pope Benedict meet with abuse victims during his September apostolic journey.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Mounting German abuse scandal: nearly 100 Church workers suspected
Mounting German abuse scandal: nearly 100 Church workers suspected
February 08, 2010
Nearly 100 German priests and Church lay workers-- only 30 of whom have faced prosecution-- are suspected of abusing children, according to a survey of German dioceses conducted by Der Spiegel. “The revelations show a dark chapter of the Church that horrifies me,” said Father Hans Langendoerfer, secretary of the German bishops’ conference.
Abuse allegations center around four Jesuit schools and date primarily from the 1970s and 1980s. A man identified by Der Spiegel as Wolfgang S., who left the Society of Jesus in 1992 and now lives in South America, apologized for abusing children at a Berlin Jesuit school. “I'm sorry for what I did to you. And if you are capable, I ask you to forgive me.” He said he had “again and again come into close contact with the torturers and victims” of Chile’s Pinochet regime following his move to the South American nation. “I was confronted with my mirror image as a tormenter of children.”
February 08, 2010
Nearly 100 German priests and Church lay workers-- only 30 of whom have faced prosecution-- are suspected of abusing children, according to a survey of German dioceses conducted by Der Spiegel. “The revelations show a dark chapter of the Church that horrifies me,” said Father Hans Langendoerfer, secretary of the German bishops’ conference.
Abuse allegations center around four Jesuit schools and date primarily from the 1970s and 1980s. A man identified by Der Spiegel as Wolfgang S., who left the Society of Jesus in 1992 and now lives in South America, apologized for abusing children at a Berlin Jesuit school. “I'm sorry for what I did to you. And if you are capable, I ask you to forgive me.” He said he had “again and again come into close contact with the torturers and victims” of Chile’s Pinochet regime following his move to the South American nation. “I was confronted with my mirror image as a tormenter of children.”
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