By Anthony Barich
AUSTRALIAN Bishops were among the first in the world to become aware of a sexual abuse crisis, Hobart Archbishop Adrian Doyle said.
In his June ‘Reflections’ pastoral letter, Archbishop Doyle said that the suffering generated by sexual abuse by clergy is likely to never go away, but added that Catholics are also suffering criticism and hurtful remarks in their workplaces as a result of the abuse that had nothing to do with them, “and you need to be supported in this difficult time”.
“The suffering generated by this conduct radiates out into the families of the victims, and also into the wider community,” he said. “I am aware that many of you are faced with criticism and hurtful remarks in your workplaces and you need to be supported at this difficult time.”
“I believe that it is fair to say that here in Australia the Bishops of the Catholic Church became aware somewhat earlier than in other countries that there is a serious problem in relation to sexual abuse within the Church.
“That does not mean mistakes have been made. I have admitted that in one instance I could have and should have acted more promptly in response to a situation that was brought to my attention.
“Prompt and decisive action following the receipt of a complaint is absolutely essential.”
The pastoral letter came just weeks before Melbourne Archbishop Denis Hart issued an apology on his Archdiocesan website in a statement, which the Archbishop read on a video which was also presented in text form.
He said that in the past 14 years, about 300 people have been compensated as victims of sexual abuse within the Archdiocese. Most of the complaints relate to incidents that occurred decades ago. Few complaints have been received of abuse which has taken place since the 1970s.
He said that in Australia, the 1970s were the worst period of reported sexual abuse cases. Most of the complaints relate to incidents from 30 to up to 80 years ago.
In his 1 July pastoral letter, the Archbishop expressed his “deep sorrow and sense of betrayal” over the sexual abuse scandals confronting the Catholic Church in Australia and around the world, and offered his “unreserved apology” to all victims of sexual abuse and to their families.
“Sexual abuse in any form, and any attempt to conceal it, is a grave evil and is totally unacceptable. As Christ’s Church we must face up to the truth of these revelations and not attempt to disguise, diminish or avoid in any way the actions of priests and Religious who have betrayed their sacred trust,” he said.
“The criminal offences and breaches of vows committed by some priests and Religious bring shame upon the entire Church. How can we Catholics not be shocked and shamed?”
Archbishop Doyle said that personal meetings on the part of a Bishop is one of the most important parts of the process of dealing with the crisis in the Catholic Church.
He testified to his own experience that such meetings “have been a precious opportunity for me to again apologise on behalf of the Church for the totally reprehensible behaviour of a member of the clergy or a person employed by the Church”.
“It has also been an opportunity for the victim to speak about their experience and how their lives had been deeply scarred by the abuse,” he said.
He added that while it is “never possible to eliminate completely the suffering endured, or to cancel out the experience”, it is possible – with the help of skilled facilitators – to reach a point where “what needs to be said has been said and what needs to be done has been done”.
He also proceeded in his pastoral letter to clarify Church policies regarding the handling of abuse allegations, the accused perpetrators and the victims, and matters of reporting to police, as laid out in Towards Healing.
Towards Healing is a pastoral paper issued in 1996 by Australia’s Bishops and Leaders of Religious Institutes to respond to allegations of abuse by personnel of the Catholic Church.
Archbishop Hart said that the Melbourne Response process, introduced in 1996 in consultation with Victoria Police, “goes a long way towards addressing compassionately the issue of sexual abuse in the Melbourne Archdiocese”. Melbourne is the only diocese with its own process, while the rest of Australia uses Towards Healing.