Survivors of clerical abuse have left the Catholic Church in no doubt about the "dreadful betrayal of trust" they experienced, the Bishop of Raphoe, Philip Boyce has admitted. In a Lenten message to congregations, read out at masses over the weekend, he maintained: “You, the people of God, have expressed to me and other Bishops that you feel angry, disappointed, shocked and saddened.
“You have rightly been asking us: how could this have happened? You feel that the leaders of the Church have let you down. Many generous, hard-working priests and religious also feel very demoralised.”
Bishop Boyce, who said that they were determined that the mistakes of the past would never happen again, stated: “Over the past few months, survivors of abuse have left us in no doubt about the dreadful betrayal of trust that they experienced.”
Commenting on the recent meeting in Rome between Irish Bishops and the Pope, the Donegal prelate said they had examined the failure of Irish church authorities for many years to act effectively in dealing with cases involving the sexual abuse of young people by some Irish clergy and religious.
Echoing the remarks in the Vatican press release following the meeting, Bishop Boyce said that all present had recognised a “grave crisis” which had led to a breakdown in trust in the Church’s leadership and had damaged its witness to the Gospel and its moral teaching.
“The meeting took place in a spirit of prayer and unity, providing guidance and encouragement in addressing the situation back home in Ireland.”
Pointing to the gospel of St. Luke when Jesus was led into the wilderness and tempted by the devil, the Bishop said the story reminded them starkly about the reality of evil.“The battle between good and evil goes on within each of us and in the human reality of the Church. Where there is great good, evil can also exist close at hand. But Jesus reveals a way contrary to that of Satan - the way of humble service and of complete obedience to God’s word.”
If they were to be open to renewal of the Catholic church in Ireland, they had to be prepared to stand up to evil, said Bishop Boyce.
“To humbly admit our failures and beg forgiveness for our sins of neglect and mismanagement. We have to be open to conversion, purification and the guidance of God’s spirit.”
Bishop Boyce said they were “determined that the mistakes of the past” would never happen again.
“Since 1996, we have regularly evaluated and reviewed our national policy and procedures for safeguarding children, to ensure that they continue to represent best practice.
“We are co-operating fully with the statutory authorities and with the National Board of Safeguarding Children to ensure that our procedures are being completely implemented.
“We have been encouraged by your tremendous support and partnership in implementing fully all civil and Church obligations in the area of safeguarding children.”
Many volunteers had been trained at Parish level to help “keep children safe” in every Church activity, the Bishop revealed.
“Only through close collaboration between priests, religious and lay faithful, can we restore confidence and credibility in this critical area.”
Stating that the journey of renewal had only begun, he referred to the pending Pastoral Letter from Pope Benedict who would encourage them in their reflection and dialogue.
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