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Abuse victims dismiss Pope’s act of contrition as ‘inadequate’
Saturday, 12 December 2009
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Victims of clerical abuse last night dismissed the Pope's statement as “inadequate” and “meaningless”, with one man vowing to take legal action because of the slow response from the Church.
Mervyn Rundle, who was abused while serving as an altar boy, had been vociferous in his calls for Bishop of Limerick Donal Murray to resign over criticisms contained in the Murphy report.
But Mr Rundle said yesterday that he was now tired of waiting for the “appropriate” response.
“They've riled me up so much that I can safely say I'm taking it further, taking it to the criminal end of things,” he said.
“I'm pushing the gardai now to get a criminal case, and if I don't get any satisfaction from that I'm going to the European courts.”
Mr Rundle was abused by Fr Thomas Naughton. The Murphy report branded Bishop Murray's failure to properly investigate Naughton following complaints as “inexcusable”.
However, legal sources said last night that it is unlikely Mr Rundle would be able to bring such a case.
The legal offence under which clerical abuse victims could bring such a case has been abolished.
Another survivor, Andrew Madden, said yesterday that Pope Benedict's statement “where he said he was deeply disturbed and distressed by the contents of the damning report into clerical abuse” meant nothing.
“What I'm expecting is for five bishops to resign, and whether I hear it from the Vatican or Twitter I don't care,” he said.
“That would be the appropriate response from the Church. Words and prayers and offers to pray for the victims are just meaningless drivel.
“Most victims say that the five bishops that are still in place and who were in place at the time of the abuse should resign,” Mr Madden said. Survivors' groups also criticised the statement with Maeve Lewis of One in Four saying that an apology for the Catholic Church's culture of secrecy and cover-up was what was required.
“To say that he is disturbed and outraged by the accounts of clerical abuse is disingenuous at the very least given that the files of the clerical sex abusers have been routinely sent to the Vatican over the years,” she said.
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24 Comments
The appropriate response is for the leader of the church to show leadership and make an anouncment of sympathy together with a decision to take action. All of which he did. So I think the people who are not happy with the Pope's statement are simply venting their anti-Catholic hatred and not being rational. They are surrounded by emotion at the moment. Discuss...
Posted by Barry | 13.12.09, 23:40 GMT
I think its utterly appalling that the pope allows the shameful people who are complicit in child abuse to retain their posts and thus further put children in the potential danger of sex offenders.
Posted by sid philis | 13.12.09, 22:00 GMT
Once he's finished aplogising for the child abuse, he could turn his attention to the shameful actions of his church during the second world war with particular reference to one of previous incumbents, often described as Hitler's Pope.
Posted by man dingo | 13.12.09, 19:42 GMT
In such times, Vatican policy always has been and always will be to circle the wagons, batten down the hatches, protect their own and discredit the victims. Expect no change. Any Bishops resigned yet for their active roles in protecting rapists and paedophiles ?? Don't hold your breath.
Posted by Anyonebutunited | 13.12.09, 14:54 GMT
I have wondered why so many Roman Catholic priests have been exposed as paedophiles and sexual deviants in general, more than in the general population. It seems to me that in such "unnatural" all-male environments, such as those in maximum security prisons, where the law of the jungle rules, men turn to rape and violence against each other as a weapon of power or sometimes as a way to remind themselves of their humanity.
Posted by Angus | 13.12.09, 12:12 GMT
weed out the guilty and put them before a judge and jury.........
Posted by Tom Murphy - Bray | 13.12.09, 11:41 GMT
Mr Rundle deserves all our support.
He should begin proceedings against the global corporation known as the Vatican immediately.
Hopefully people will begin to recognise that, like any other business tied to convential Maritime Admarlty/Common law of western society, the vatican cannot escape the justice of our present legal system.
Please give this man the support he needs. If you are a legal mind please help him free of charge.
This case will illuminate the Catholic church for waht it really is. A global Corporation, nothing less.
Good luck Mr Rundle.
Posted by Gary Hall | 13.12.09, 02:54 GMT
Queensland, Catholic Education Office has just sacked 3 people including a headmaster for refusing to deal (sack/report) a repeat offender. This is what is needed in Ireland strong leadership not passing blame on, acknowledge the pain and suffering deal with consequences and put concrete measurements into how to deal with future offences! No amount of 'sorry' statements makes up for the abuse and suffering. I am a child migrant living in AUstrlaia so I know indeed the neglect firsthand from the Catholic Church and the Irish/Australian governments. Stop talking and do something
Posted by dympna | 13.12.09, 00:56 GMT
Why would anyone in there right mind want to join up with a state that is ruled by the catholic church,god help us
Posted by steve | 12.12.09, 23:05 GMT
An 'act of contrition', from the head bishop of the Church of Rome, but no resignations nor expulsions of the offending bishops.
There needs to be a root and branch examination of the entire teachings and disciplinary code of the Church of Rome.
No mere Vatican statement could ever suffice in the light of such appalling treatment of the abused and hurt. What about a bit of judgement day honesty in stead of cover up.
'and they were judged every man according to their works, (Rev20:13)
Posted by Rev Mervyn Cotton | 12.12.09, 20:06 GMT
OMG I am happy that I no longer believe in the power of the clergy over the common people.
Posted by jd | 12.12.09, 19:35 GMT
The Pope should unfrock these priests and give the police the dossiers of evidence it already holds on them. Then it might just regain some credibilty.
Posted by Sam | 12.12.09, 15:51 GMT
Like the pope never knew. The RCC needs another pope John XXIII to turn the RCC around. Thoes in Ireland that do not want to hear of this major child abuse crimes and look the other way are part of the problem.
Posted by phl | 12.12.09, 14:46 GMT
What the pope should say is that what happened to these children was a sin and the priests will burn in hell for what they did. To think this just happens in Ireland is wrong. This happened in Newfoundland, Canada. It happened in England, America and Australia, to name but a few others. At no stage has the pope said anything except for watered down comments that mean nothing. It is clear that a group of men that are not allowed to marry or have sex becomes the basis for child abuse. If this was any other business or organisation, they would be closed down and put out of business and the leaders would be sent to jail for allowing it to happen.
Posted by --thenewmule-- | 12.12.09, 13:38 GMT
To little to late. pope Benedict knew this was going on when he was cardinal razinger, as did pope john paul and did nothing to stop it. As with most things your only sorry when your caught.
I don't buy their lame excuse for an apology for a second.!!
Posted by A Realist! | 12.12.09, 13:38 GMT
What a load of nonsense from the Pope and the Papal Nuncio.It was part of the Pope's duties when he was a Cardinal to read these abuse cases on a weekly basis.To now say that he is shocked is a load of rubbish. No one is going to be held to account and the guilty are going to escape any punishment.Those clergy who knew about these terrible crimes will be punished in the next life.
Posted by frank o'connor | 12.12.09, 12:10 GMT
What a load of nonsense from the Pope and the Papal Nuncio.It was part of the Pope's duties when he was a Cardinal to read these abuse cases on a weekly basis.To now say that he is shocked is a load of rubbish. No one is going to be held to account and the guilty are going to escape any punishment.Those clergy who knew about these terrible crimes will be punished in the next life.
Posted by frank o'connor | 12.12.09, 12:10 GMT
Monsignor Sheehy “considered that the penal aspects of that law should rarely be invoked”.
Veteran commentator/journalist/economist Joe Foyle made an interesting observation on the Studies blog about Diarmuid Martin’s remarks on Prime Time about the collapse of diocesan severity in the 1960s:
"It seems that around the 1960s a major policy change emerged. In line with the secular anti-punishment mood of the times, it was decided that the defrocking sanction was inhumane and that, instead, rehabilitation should be attempted to enable offenders to continue to work as priests. The policy change backfired when offenders re-offended. That hurt children and blighted lives gravely, cost Dioceses and Congregations hundreds of millions, evoked ‘cover-up’ allegations that undermined Bishops and the priesthood in general, and ushered in our current era of Catholic laity who are effectively priestless."
Posted by shane o'neill | 12.12.09, 11:41 GMT
The Dublin Report did not conclude that Canon Law impeded the prosecution of clerics, indeed it was never even applied. As Chapter 4 of the Report noted, after Vatican II there was a “collapse of respect for canon law [CIC] in archdiocesan circles … offenders were neither prosecuted nor made accountable within the church”. The 1917 CIC “decreed deprivation of office and/or benefice, or expulsion from the clerical state for such offences”. A bishop who heard of an abuse allegation was canonically required to investigate it, and expel the priest from the priesthood if found guilty in a canonical trial (which was to happen parallel and independently of a civil prosection). The anti-'legalistic' mindset after the Second Vatican Council lead the post-conciliar Archbishops to ignore the CIC and only two canonical trials ever took place in the period under reivew (both were in the 1990s) in spite of severe opposition from Monsignor Sheehy, the archdiocesan “expert” in canon law and ultra-lib
Posted by shane o'neill | 12.12.09, 11:40 GMT
The impact of "the Vatican" on the Irish Church is over-rated. Ever since the Second Vatican Council, the Irish bishops pay only nominal felicity to Rome, and in practice ignore well over 90% of Church rescripts. For example none have implemented Redemptionis Sacramentum or much else indeed besides.They are filled with arrogant pride and forget the injunction of Pope Pius V that child abusers should be burned at the stake. Still even as bad as they are, it would not be impertinent to point that according to the Sexual Abuse and Violence in Ireland (SAVI) report of 2002, around 320,000 people were raped in childhood, about 4 per cent of child rapes have been perpetrated by clergy.
Posted by shane o'neill | 12.12.09, 11:39 GMT
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