English
Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor has urged Catholics around the world to
pray for the Church in Ireland as it seeks to ‘recover and reform’ in
the wake of the devastating clerical sex abuse crisis.
The
cardinal is one of six Catholic Church leaders appointed by Pope
Benedict to lead an investigation into the causes of abuse within
Ireland’s major dioceses and religious congregations.
Last Monday the
Vatican announced that this so-called ‘apostolic visitation’ has
concluded its first stage and that the initial reports have been
submitted to Vatican officials.
The visitation was first
announced by Pope Benedict in a March 2010 Pastoral letter to Irish
Catholics after two reports revealed widespread abuse of minors on the
part of members of the clergy and church employees stretching back
decades.
A Vatican statement said no further visitations to
dioceses and seminaries were planned, but that there may be additional
visits to some religious communities.
It also said that by early 2012,
the Vatican would publish a synthesis of the results of the reports, as
well as future prospects "with a view to the nationwide mission
announced" by the Pope in his pastoral letter.
Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor who has been overseeing the
investigation in the archdiocese of Armagh said that....
"It was clearly a very important visitation, not just for Armargh, but for all the other dioceses where the visitors went..
It’s
very hard to say there’ll be an immediate recovery, it’ll take time and
it’ll take good leadership, it’ll take the gift of the Spirit and
sincere repentance….
It’ll take honesty and transparency in
dealing with issues of child abuse, but I think it also needs our
prayers as well, for a country which I love very much, and for the
Church in Ireland which has done so much in the past for the Church all
over the world...."