Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Pope must do more than just say sorry to victims
Archbishop calls for pontiff to act during Irish trip
ONE of Ireland’s top clerics has called on Pope Francis to challenge the scandal-riddled Church to show victims more care.
The Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin made the comments during Mass at St Mary’s Pro-cathedral in the capital yesterday.
He said it is not enough for the Pope to apologise, but he must also engage.
The archbishop blasted the Church’s handling of abuse cases.
He added: “As we await the visit of Pope Francis, we look at a complex horizon of our Irish Church.
“The scandals of abuse in the Church have produced a deep-seated resentment among believers.
“It is not just anger over the horror of abuse, but an anger at the role of Church leadership in compounding the suffering of so many in institutions for children, for unmarried mothers and for vulnerable women. These were people who found themselves placed in the care of the Church to be loved and respected but who so often encountered extraordinary harshness.
“What is worse, they were in the main poor and vulnerable people.”
Archbishop Martin said the hurt suffered by victims of sexual abuse had been made worse by the behaviour of Church authorities. He added: “When you add up all the categories of victims, you can see that the number was immense. We still only know the identity of some.
“It is not something that belongs to the past but a hurt that survivors and those close to them carry in their hearts every day of their lives.
“The anger is not just about abuse but also about a Church that was authoritarian, harsh, autocratic and self-protecting. Rather than bringing the liberating message of the love of God, it imposed a world of rules to such an extent that it lacked respect for the personal life of many and especially of women.
“We experienced a Church that felt that it knew all the answers.
“We experienced a Church that failed to form mature consciences and help men and women grow in discerning a mature faith.
“Faith requires rules and norms but there are also occasions where empty rules alienate from Jesus himself.”
The cleric also lashed out at the Church for how it treated women.
But he said: “Let me forcefully add there were and are so many examples of how the love of God is witnessed in the lives of good priests and men and women in religious life who never sought publicity or anything for themselves.”