Young Irish priest, Fr Damien McGroarty, 29, spoke on Sunday of his shame at the child sex abuse scandal in his diocese and said that because of the actions of other priests he is scared of being branded a paedophile. Posing questions in he homily, the young priest asked: Will people ridicule me for becoming Read more
Next month will mark the 10-year anniversary of the explosion of the sexual abuse crisis, triggered by a January 2002 article in the Boston Globe on Fr. John Geoghan, accused of abusing more than 130 children over a 30-year career. (Geoghan was killed in prison in August 2003.) Geoghan remains an appalling symbol of the Read more
An independent audit of the handling of sex-abuse complaints in six Irish dioceses by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church (NBSCCC) has found a marked improvement in recent months. However, the NBSCCC says Church officials regularly overlooked the rights of victims in order to protect priests, they covered up evidence of abuse, moved accused Read more
A day after an investigation by prominent Adelaide QC, Michael Abbott, found there was no substance to an allegation of rape against one of its senior clerics, the complainant, Traditional Anglican Bishop John Hepworth has filed a complaint with the South Australian police. Bitterly disappointed with the Church investigation, Hepworth said he had no choice but Read more
The Catholic Church in Adelaide has found there is no substance to an allegation of rape against one of its senior clerics. The allegation was brought by Traditional Anglican Archbishop, John Hepworth and dates back 40 years to when he was a Catholic seminarian. The investigation, conducted by Michael Abbott, a prominent Adelaide QC, found Read more
Pope Benedict XVI insisted on Saturday that all of society’s institutions and not just the Catholic church must be held to “exacting” standards in their response to sex abuse of children, and defended the church’s efforts to confront the problem.
Benedict acknowledged in remarks to visiting U.S. bishops during an audience at the Vatican that pedophilia was a “scourge” for society, and that decades of scandals over clergy abusing children had left Catholics in the United States bewildered.
Read the article...An official of a U.S. group advocating for victims of clergy abuse lamented that Benedict, with his remarks, was setting a “terrible example” for bishops.
“No public figure talks more about child safety but does little to actually make children safer than Pope Benedict,” David Clohessy, national director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, told The Associated Press in an emailed statement.
“The pope would have us believe that this crisis is about sex abuse. It isn’t. It is about covering up sex abuse,” Clohessy said. “And while child sex crimes happen in every institution, in no institution are they ignored or concealed as consistently as in the Catholic church.”
Read the article...Fr Dan Duane, of Cecilstown in Mallow, Co Cork, had told the jury at Cork Circuit Criminal Court that he had no recollection of the meeting where the woman alleged he had assaulted her.
The alleged victim had claimed that this meeting had changed the course of her life. She claimed Fr Duane had indecently assaulted her while whispering to her that it was “OK with God” and “God would approve.”
Fr Duane denied the assault and said he had no recollection of the meeting the woman complained of.
He told the court she must have invented the story.
The jury delivered its not guilty verdict after an hour and 25 minutes of deliberations.
Read the article...A monk wanted by police over child abuse allegations at a leading Catholic school secretly visited Rome to empty his Vatican bank account while on the run.
Father Laurence Soper, a former teacher at St Benedict’s, West London, disappeared in March and failed to answer his police bail.
The school is attached to the Benedictine monastery Ealing Abbey and old boys include comedian Julian Clary and BBC chairman Lord Patten. It has been at the centre of a scandal since claims surfaced last year that pupils had suffered decades of sex abuse from monks, prompting a high-level Vatican inquiry.
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Ireland’s Prime Minister Enda Kenny wants high journalistic standards restored at RTE, Ireland’s National Broadcaster, after its ‘Prime Time Investigates’ current affairs programme made false allegations against Irish Mill Hill priest, Fr Kevin Reynolds. RTE accused Reynolds of fathering a child with a minor while working as a missionary in Africa. Ireland’s Communications Minister, Pat Read more