Adams had commented earlier in response to a letter to the editor published in the Manawatu Standard by Dr Christopher Longhurst, leader of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).

Puzzling response

Adams says he remains puzzled by Longhurst's unwillingness to accept and recognise a culture change in the Church he works for.

He acknowledges Longhurst's work in the area of sexual abuse by priests.

"I acknowledge the work of survivors and their advocates has been critical in bringing to light the scourge of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church and in our wider society", writes Adams.

"As the Roman Catholic Bishop of Palmerston North, I remain convinced the Church has made significant strides in her efforts over recent times to make the Catholic Church a safe place for children and vulnerable adults, but with no room for complacency or a sense that a job has been completed.

"Our culture has changed, and it must continue to change."

Adams went on to express his trust in the work of police investigators and the Church's National Office for Professional Standards.

Zero appetite

In his letter, Longhurst said that Adams' earlier assurances that there is "Zero appetite for a culture of abuse in the Catholic Church" do not ring true.

He says that Adams' July 30 claim that, if an accusation were made against a Church member, that Church member would be stood down is not true.

Longhurst says he has a complaint against a priest that is under investigation, but that the priest is still in active ministry in the Palmerston North Diocese.

Christopher Longhurst

He says the situation is compounded by the refusal of Adams' professional standards office to allow the investigations into that complaint to proceed.

He also claims that an unnamed priest in an allegation made by Steven Carvell was never stood down when the allegation was made and that, even in retirement, that priest remains in ministry while the Church investigations continue.

Source

• Manawatu Standard

The Waikato Times reports a woman from within the Hamilton Catholic diocese saying that in a meeting with Lowe, she told him she was raped by a Catholic priest who had visited her house to perform a blessing.

In the course of the conversation, the Times discloses the woman says Lowe told her, "SNAP have blown things out of proportion at the Royal Commission [of Inquiry into Abuse in Care]."

The comments left her feeling "the church has let me down," she says.

"I was shaking, and it caused me to cry because the Bishop brought back a feeling that what the priest did to me was not significant.

"When survivors speak up against the abuse then the Bishop thinks this is out of proportion. I would like to know what a proportionate response is to being raped by a priest, as I was."

With legal matters continuing, the Waikato Times sought an interview with Lowe about the woman's experience but says the diocese responded with an emailed statement from Lowe.

Quoting from part of the email, The Times reports Lowe indicated he had been "actively helping [the woman] in my role as Bishop.

"I am not able to breach the confidentiality of my work with her by discussing it in public."

However, the abuse victim complained to a Catholic abuse Survivor network (SNAP) about Lowe and his response to her disclosure.

Against the background of ongoing legal matters, SNAP's national leader Dr Christopher Longhurst is looking to Lowe for a more pastoral resolution to his comment and the effect it had on the woman.

"I am sorry that Bishop Lowe has not been upfront with an explanation as to what he said," says Longhurst. "I do not believe this has anything to do with confidentiality. Privacy and confidentiality pertain to personal information, not to process or requests for clarification."

"To me, the Bishop's response seems like an example of the three Ds of avoiding accountability: deny, deflect, diffuse. A straightforward and honest response to our request for clarification would have been more appropriate," Longhurst adds.

"Stonewalling, silence and denial are the constant response from this Bishop," says Longhurst.

Longhurst feels an apology to the woman "would have been more appropriate and is still warranted".

Source

• The Waikato Times

In March, the diocese struck a memorandum of understanding with the Male Survivors of Aotearoa (MSA) support group.

The document details the process where abuse survivors are referred to MSA, which in turn will help survivors access counselling and other services.

The commercial deal includes funding from the diocese.

However, Dr Christopher Longhurst (pictured), founder of the newly established New Zealand branch of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), wants more transparency over the agreement.

Last week he contacted the ODT expressing his concern the signatories were not prepared to make public a copy of the document, saying SNAP wants to use a copy as a template for its agreements.

Longhurst said he emailed Bishop Michael Dooley in July, but MSA replied declining to release the confidential document.

Longhurst again emailed Dooley in September asking him to "desist" from signing the confidential agreements, arguing that in the past secrecy had harmed victims.

Describing itself as New Zealand's recognised national organisation for male survivors of sexual violence, MSA says it supports more than 1500 survivors across the country and more than 40 in Dunedin.

MSA trustee Tony Chamberlain calls the requests "totally disrespectful and completely inappropriate".

"We consider the letter (email) a totally offensive affront to the integrity of all concerned", Chamberlain wrote to SNAP international chief executive, Zach Hiner.

Longhurst maintains the Diocese's approach is wrong, but stresses his opinion is not a personal attack on Dooley.

Longhurst is a survivor and lecturer at the Wellington based NZ Catholic Bishop's Catholic Institute.

"The issue is very clear. It's wrong for any peer support group to get into confidential agreements with the Catholic Church - absolutely wrong", Longhurst told the ODT.

However MSA Chairman, Philip Chapman defended the agreement and Dooley.

He says the existence of the agreement is not confidential and that Dooley had been totally supportive and clearly concerned for survivors.

Chapman acknowledged the modest financial contribution from the Church.

He said the funding was invested directly in the support services for the referred survivors.

Contacted in Rome, Dooley indicated his happiness with the document.

"This is an agreement between our two organisations with the good of survivors the priority", he told the ODT.

At the time he started SNAP NZ, Longhurst told CathNews that all it takes to heal is a little support.

"None of our members are experts. We're just survivors helping survivors", he said.

Sources

• ODT
• CathNews
• Image: TCI

Some have expressed concern about a perceived conflict of interest because of his Catholic faith.

Documents obtained by Stuff show Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin rejected his offer.

Instead, she asked Satyanand for a plan to combat any risk to the integrity of the Royal Commission.

Some child abuse survivors and their advocates are calling for Satyanand's resignation offer to be accepted.

They say his position risks tainting the inquiry's credibility.

On Friday, Martin said she had full confidence in Satyanand and the commission's conflict of interest policy.

"Sir Anand was appointed when the Royal Commission's terms were only about abuse in state care. He conducted the consultation process and recommended to the Government that the inquiry also cover faith-based institutions," she said.

"He thought that his Catholic upbringing and background were well-known, but made a point of raising this matter as he wanted to be transparent."

She said he did "the right thing" raising it, and an atheist chair "would be a potential conflict too".

Satyanand first outlined concerns in a September letter to Martin.

"I ... think it's appropriate to establish that you know I am a practising Catholic by religion. I was brought up in a Catholic household and went to Sacred Heart College in Auckland.

I have kept up associations with that school and have attended a number of its public occasions there through the years."

He was involved in a patron's group which helped raise $9m to rebuild Wellington's St Mary of the Angels church.

Satyanand is a former lawyer, judge and ombudsman. He was the 19th Governor-General of New Zealand, from 2006 to 2011.

After returning to civilian life, Satyanand chaired the Commonwealth Foundation for two two-year terms, ending December 2016.

He led the Commonwealth team observing the national elections of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea.

Satyanand also chaired a commission set up by the Anglican church to develop options on the ordination and blessing of people in same-sex relationships.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• rotaryoceania.zone
• nzherald.co.nz
• Image.