ARCHBISHOP of Dublin Diarmuid Martin admitted the Catholic Church has made mistakes in dealing with clerical sexual abuse of children and asked forgiveness for any hurt he had personally caused. Giving a homily on World Peace Day at Booterstown yesterday, the archbishop called for partnership in eliminating all forms of abuse of children wherever it exists around the world, and called for the Church to become “a model” of protection.
His comments come just days after the archbishop said he was extremely concerned about the mishandling of child sexual abuse complaints in the diocese of Cloyne.
Referring to the growing number of calls for Bishop John Magee to resign, Archbishop Martin said: “He should do what is best for child protection.”
Bishop Magee has withstood weeks of pressure and is steadfastly refusing to stand down.
Speaking yesterday, Archbishop Martin told the congregation: “We need a Church which protects and we need a Church which becomes a model and a partner of protection.
“I would hope, for example, that in the year to come it would be possible to take up the appeal made by Pope Benedict at his Christmas Mass and work on the basis of partnership to eliminate all the various forms of abuse of children wherever they exist in our nation and around the world. As archbishop of Dublin I recognise the faults of the Church in this area and I ask for pardon at the beginning of a new year, especially where I personally have caused hurt,” he said.
His comments are thought to refer to a report by the Dublin Archdiocese Commission of Investigation, which is expected to go before the cabinet within weeks and to be published shortly afterwards.
It is believed it will provide damning evidence of how the archdiocese failed to properly protect young children.
Archbishop Martin also said that the Church must do more to care for elderly people.
“We need today also a church which takes a lead in the protection of the elderly, to ensure that they can live and be blessed with the graciousness and security and peace they deserve and can continue to bring their contribution to society,” he said.
The cloud of child sex abuse still hangs over the Church, with recent revelations about cover-ups at Cloyne.
The HSE report into the systems failures that led to the mishandling of child abuse complaints in the diocese of Cloyne is due to be published later this month.
A second investigation into child protection procedures in all the Catholic Church’s dioceses will also be published this month.
This second HSE audit raised a red flag about dubious practices in Cloyne, it was revealed recently.
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(Source: IE)