Subject: VISnews 110903
Organization: VIS - Ufficio Stampa della Santa Sede
From: Vatican Information Service - Eng - txt
VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
TWENTY FIRST YEAR - N. 145
ENGLISH
SATURDAY, 3 SEPTEMBER 2011
SUMMARY:
- The Holy See Responds to the Cloyne Report
- Comment of Fr. Lombardi on Response to Cloyne Report
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts
___________________________________________________________
THE HOLY SEE RESPONDS TO THE CLOYNE REPORT
VATICAN CITY, 3 SEP 2011 (VIS) - Msgr. Ettore Balestrero, under secretary
for Relations with States met this morning with Helena Keleher, charge
d'affaires a.i. of the Embassy of Ireland to the Holy See, and consigned to
her the "Holy See's Response to the Irish Government concerning the Cloyne
Report".
The Cloyne Report was published by the Commission of Investigation into
the Diocese of Cloyne. Eamon Gilmore, Irish deputy prime minister and
minister for foreign affairs and trade, in the course of a meeting on 14
July with Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza, apostolic nuncio to Ireland, requested
him to convey a copy of the report to the Holy See, together with the Irish
Government's views on the matters raised, to which the minister requested a
response.
Recognising the seriousness of the crimes detailed in the report, which
should never have happened within the Church of Jesus Christ, and wishing to
respond to the Irish Government's request, the Holy See, after carefully
examining the Cloyne Report and considering the many issues raised, has
sought to respond comprehensively.
A summary of the response is given below. The full English-language text
is available here.
http://press.catholica.va/news_services/bulletin/news/27974.php?index27974&
langit
1. General remarks about the Cloyne Report
The Holy See has carefully examined the Cloyne Report, which has brought
to light very serious and disturbing failings in the handling of accusations
of sexual abuse of children and young people by clerics in the diocese of
Cloyne.
The Holy See wishes to state at the outset its profound abhorrence for the
crimes of sexual abuse which took place in that diocese and is sorry and
ashamed for the terrible sufferings which the victims of abuse and their
families have had to endure within the Church of Jesus Christ, a place where
this should never happen. It is very concerned at the findings of the
Commission concerning grave failures in the ecclesiastical governance of the
diocese and the mishandling of allegations of abuse. It is particularly
disturbing that these failures occurred despite the undertaking given by the
bishops and religious superiors to apply the guidelines developed by the
Church in Ireland to help ensure child protection and despite the Holy See's
norms and procedures relating to cases of sexual abuse. However, the
approach taken by the Church in Ireland in recent times to the problem of
child sexual abuse is benefiting from ongoing experience and proving more
and more effective in preventing the recurrence of these crimes and in
dealing with cases as they arise.
2. Issues raised by the Cloyne Report
The Holy See's Response addresses in detail the various charges made
against it, which seem to be based primarily on the Cloyne Report's account
and assessment of the letter addressed to the Irish bishops on 31 January
1997 by the then apostolic nuncio, Archbishop Luciano Storero, concerning
the response of the Congregation for the Clergy to the document "Child
Sexual Abuse: Framework for a Church Response" (the Framework Document). The
Commission of Inquiry asserts that this response gave comfort to those who
dissented from the stated official Church policy and was unsupportive
especially in relation to reporting to the civil authorities.
The Holy See wishes to state the following in relation to the response of
the Congregation for the Clergy:
The Congregation described the Framework Document as a "study document" on
the basis of information provided by the Irish bishops, who described the
text not as an official document of the Irish Bishops' Conference, but,
rather, as a "report" of the Irish Catholic Bishops' Advisory Committee on
Child Sexual Abuse by Priests and Religious, recommended "to individual
dioceses and congregations as a framework for addressing the issue of child
sexual abuse".
The Irish bishops never sought the "recognitio" of the Holy See for the
Framework Document, which, in accordance with canon 455 of the Code of Canon
Law, would have been required only if they intended it to be a general
decree of the conference binding on all its members. However, the lack of
"recognitio" itself did not preclude the application of the document's
guidelines, since individual bishops could adopt them without having to
refer to the Holy See. This is, in fact, what generally happened in Ireland.
The Irish bishops consulted the congregation to resolve difficulties
relating to some of the content of the Framework Document. The congregation
offered advice to the bishops with a view to ensuring that the measures
which they intended to apply would prove effective and unproblematic from a
canonical perspective. For this reason, the congregation drew attention to
the requirement that these measures should be in harmony with canonical
procedures in order to avoid conflicts that could give rise to successful
appeals in Church tribunals. The congregation did not reject the Framework
Document. Rather, it wanted to ensure that the measures contained in the
Framework Document would not undermine the bishops' efforts to discipline
those guilty of child abuse in the Church. At the same time, it is important
to bear in mind the decision of the Holy See in 1994 to grant special
provisions to the bishops of the United States to deal with child sexual
abuse in the Church. These provisions were extended to the bishops of
Ireland in 1996 to assist them to overcome difficulties that they were
experiencing at that time (cf. part six of the response).
Meeting canonical requirements to ensure the correct administration of
justice within the Church in no way precluded co-operation with the civil
authorities. The Congregation for the Clergy did express reservations about
mandatory reporting, but it did not forbid the Irish bishops from reporting
accusations of child sexual abuse nor did it encourage them to flout Irish
law. In this regard, the then prefect of the congregation, Cardinal Dario
Castrillon Hoyos, in his meeting with the Irish bishops at Rosses Point,
County Sligo (Ireland), on 12 November 1998 unequivocally stated: "I also
wish to say with great clarity that the Church, especially through its
pastors (bishops), should not in any way put an obstacle in the legitimate
path of civil justice, when such is initiated by those who have such rights,
while at the same time, she should move forward with her own canonical
procedures, in truth, justice and charity towards all". It should be noted
that, at the time, not only the Church but also the Irish State was engaged
in efforts to improve its own legislation on child sexual abuse. To this
end, the Irish government organized an extensive consultation on mandatory
reporting in 1996 and, after taking into account the reservations expressed
by various professional groups and individuals in civil society - views
broadly in line with those expressed by the congregation - it decided not to
introduce mandatory reporting into the Irish legal system. Given that the
Irish government of the day decided not to legislate on the matter, it is
difficult to see how Archbishop Storero's letter to the Irish bishops, which
was issued subsequently, could possibly be construed as having somehow
subverted Irish law or undermined the Irish State in its efforts to deal
with the problem in question.
3. Issues raised by Irish political leaders
The Holy See wishes to state the following in relation to some of the
reactions of Irish political leaders:
While the Holy See understands and shares the depth of public anger and
frustration at the findings of the Cloyne Report, which found expression in
the speech made by the Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, in Dail Eireann on 20 July
2011, it has significant reservations about some aspects of the speech. In
particular, the accusation that the Holy See attempted "to frustrate an
inquiry in a sovereign, democratic republic as little as three years ago,
not three decades ago" is unfounded. Indeed, when asked, a government
spokesperson clarified that Mr Kenny was not referring to any specific
incident.
In fact, accusations of interference by the Holy See are belied by the
many reports cited as the basis for such criticisms. Those reports - lauded
for their exhaustive investigation of sexual abuse and the way it was
managed - contain no evidence that the Holy See meddled in the internal
affairs of the Irish State or was involved in the day-to-day management of
Irish dioceses or religious congregations with respect to sexual abuse
issues. Indeed, what is impressive about these reports, and the vast
information that they rely upon, is that there is no support for these
accusations.
In this regard, the Holy See wishes to make it quite clear that it in no
way hampered or sought to interfere in any inquiry into cases of child
sexual abuse in the diocese of Cloyne. Furthermore, at no stage did the Holy
See seek to interfere with Irish civil law or impede the civil authority in
the exercise of its duties.
The Holy See would also point out that the text of the then Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger quoted by Mr Kenny in his speech is taken from No. 39 of
the "Instruction on the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian", published by
the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on 24 May 1990. This text is
concerned neither with the manner in which the Church should behave within a
democratic society nor with issues of child protection, as Mr Kenny's use of
the quotation would seem to imply, but with the theologian's service to the
Church community.
In his meeting with the apostolic nuncio, Eamon Gilmore deputy prime
minister and minister for foreign affairs and trade, stated that "among the
most disturbing of the findings of the Cloyne report is that the Vatican
authorities undermined the Irish Church's own efforts to deal with clerical
child sexual abuse by describing the framework document adopted by the
bishops' conference as a mere 'study document'". As is made clear in the
Holy See's response this description was based on the explanations of its
nature as provided by the Irish bishops and in the published text itself. In
no way was it a dismissal of the serious efforts undertaken by the Irish
bishops to address the scourge of child sexual abuse.
With regard to the motion passed in Dail Eireann on 20 July 2011, and by
Seanad Eireann a week later, deploring "the Vatican's intervention which
contributed to the undermining of the child protection framework and
guidelines of the Irish State and the Irish bishops" the Holy See wishes to
clarify that at no stage did it make any comment about the Irish State's
child protection measures, let alone seek to undermine them. The Holy See
observes that there is no evidence cited anywhere in the Cloyne Report to
support the claim that its supposed "intervention" contributed to their
"undermining". As for those of the Irish bishops, the response offers
sufficient clarifications to show that these were in no way undermined by
any intervention of the Holy See.
4. Concluding remarks
In its response, the Holy See offers a presentation of the Church's
approach to child protection, including the relevant canonical legislation,
and refers to the Holy Father's "Letter to the Catholics of Ireland",
published on 19 March 2010, in which Pope Benedict indicates his expectation
that the Irish bishops will co-operate with the civil authorities, to
implement fully the norms of canon law and to ensure the full and impartial
application of the child safety norms of the Church in Ireland.
The publication of the Cloyne Report marks a further stage in the long and
difficult path of ascertaining the truth, of penance and purification, and
of healing and renewal of the Church in Ireland. The Holy See does not
consider itself extraneous to this process but shares in it in a spirit of
solidarity and commitment.
In a spirit of humility, the Holy See, while rejecting unfounded
accusations, welcomes all objective and helpful observations and suggestions
to combat with determination the appalling crime of sexual abuse of minors.
The Holy See wishes to state once again that it shares the deep concern and
anxiety expressed by the Irish authorities, by Irish citizens in general and
by the bishops, priests, religious and lay faithful of Ireland with regard
to the criminal and sinful acts of sexual abuse perpetrated by clergy and
religious. It also recognises the understandable anger, disappointment and
sense of betrayal of those affected - particularly the victims and their
families - by these vile and deplorable acts and by the way in which they
were sometimes handled by Church authorities, and for all of this it wishes
to reiterate its sorrow for what happened. It is confident that the measures
which the Church has introduced in recent years at a universal level, as
well as in Ireland, will prove more effective in preventing the recurrence
of these acts and contribute to the healing of those who suffered abuse and
to the restoration of mutual confidence and collaboration between Church and
State authorities, which is essential for the effective combating of the
scourge of abuse. Naturally, the Holy See is well aware that the painful
situation to which the episodes of abuse have given rise cannot be resolved
swiftly or easily, and that although much progress has been made, much
remains to be done.
Since the early days of the Irish State and especially since the
establishment of diplomatic relations in 1929, the Holy See has always
respected Ireland's sovereignty, has maintained cordial and friendly
relations with the country and its authorities, has frequently expressed its
admiration for the exceptional contribution of Irish men and women to the
Church's mission and to the betterment of peoples throughout the world, and
has been unfailing in its support of all efforts to promote peace on the
island during the recent troubled decades. Consistent with this attitude,
the Holy See wishes to reaffirm its commitment to constructive dialogue and
co-operation with the Irish government, naturally on the basis of mutual
respect, so that all institutions, whether public or private, religious or
secular, may work together to ensure that the Church and, indeed, society in
general will always be safe for children and young people.
OP/ VIS
20110903 (2360)
COMMENT OF FR. LOMBARDI ON RESPONSE TO CLOYNE REPORT
VATICAN CITY, 3 SEP 2011 (VIS) - Speaking on Vatican Radio today, Holy See
Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. commented on the Holy See's
Response to the Irish Government concerning the Cloyne Report, which was
issued this morning. "The document", he said, "is clearly structured and
seeks to give detailed and documented answers to all the questions raised,
inserting them into a broader perspective".
"The text of the document shows how the Holy See has given very serious
and respectful consideration to the queries and criticism it has received,
and has undertaken to answer them serenely and exhaustively, avoiding
polemics even when giving clear answers to the accusations made".
The Holy See hopes that its response "will achieve the fundamental shared
goal of contributing to rebuilding a climate of trust and co-operation with
the Irish authorities, which is essential for an effective commitment on the
part of the Church and society to guarantee the primary goal: protecting
children and young people".
OP/ VIS
20110903 (180)
AUDIENCES
VATICAN CITY, 3 SEP 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate
audiences:
- Cardinal Marc Ouellet P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.
- Six prelates from the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India, on their
"ad limina" visit:
- Bishop Peter Machado of Belgaum.
- Bishop Henry D'Souza of Bellary.
- Bishop Anthony Swamy Thomasappa of Chikmagalur.
- Bishop Robert Michael Miranda of Gulbarga.
- Bishop Derek Fernandes of Karwar.
- Bishop Aloysius Paul D'Souza of Mangalore.
AP:AL/ VIS 20110903
(90)
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
VATICAN CITY, 3 SEP 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Accepted the resignation, with effect from 1 October, from the office of
president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and of the
Governorate of Vatican City State presented by Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo,
upon having reached the age limit.
- Appointed, with effect from 1 October, Archbishop Giuseppe Bertello,
apostolic nuncio to Italy and to the Republic of San Marino, as president of
the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and of the Governorate of
Vatican City State.
- Appointed Msgr. Giuseppe Sciacca as secretary general of the Governorate
of Vatican City State, at the same time elevating him to the dignity of
bishop. The bishop-elect was born in Catania in 1955. He studied at the
Pontifical Lateran University, graduating in canon law from the Pontifical
University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome and in philosophy from the
University of Catania. He was ordained a priest in 1978 and incardinated in
the diocese of Arcireale where, apart from being involved in pastoral work,
he taught philosophy and history at State schools, and canon law at the
local theological institute. Defender of the bond and promoter of justice,
and later judge, in the regional tribunal of Sicily, since 1999 he has been
a prelate auditor of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota.
NA/ VIS
20110903 (230)
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