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THIRTY-FOUR CHILEAN bishops have resigned over a child sex abuse scandal within the Catholic Church after three days of meetings with Pope Francis at the Vatican, a spokesman for the bishops has said.
“We, all the bishops present in Rome, have tendered our resignation to the Holy Father so that he may decide freely for each of us,” a statement read out by the spokesman said.
Yesterday, Pope Francis had promised “changes” to the Chilean church to “restore justice” following a child abuse scandal that has come to haunt his papacy.
In a letter to the 34 bishops, Pope Francis had given no indication of eventual consequences for those suspected of keeping silent about the abuse.
The pope said he had asked for “forgiveness from the heart” from the abuse victims, adding that the Chilean bishops expressed their “firm intention to repair the damage caused”.
The letter ended with a call for the bishops to create a church which listens to “the hungry, the imprisoned, the migrant and the abused”.
In response to this pressure, the bishops have today tended their resignations.
’Making history’
The unprecedented summoning of the Chilean delegation to Rome has given Pope Francis a chance to repair some of the damage done during his visit to the country in January, when his defence of controversial bishop Juan Barros caused a public outcry.
The pontiff had strongly defended Barros who has been accused of covering up abuses by Fernando Karadima, another priest, in the 1980s and ’90s.
Francis at the time said he was convinced of Barros’ innocence and demanded “proof” before he would speak out against him.
Francis later apologised to the victims, admitting he had made “grave mistakes” after reading a 2,300-page report on the abuse in Chile.
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Strangely, I don’t remember any mass resignation of Irish bishops.
@Brendan O’Brien: shhhh, if we don’t talk about it apparently people will forget
@Barry Somers: An entire country’s Bishops resign over child sex abuse scandals! Reassuring to know the Catholic Church is completely outside our Primary and Secondary Education System now.
@Brendan O’Brien: in fairness, they did move paedophile priests around quite a bit.
@George Hogan:
Would advise scepticism ref motives behind this move.
@Brendan O’Brien: darned sure you don’t remember. The Irish bishops looked into their souls and decided it wasn’t necessary. Much more important to continue to hoodwink the people
@Brendan O’Brien: not one or any nuns either! not one of them faced prosecution because of the Indemnity deal made by Dr. Woods during Bertie Ahern’s government that protected them. Survivors are being refused even basic help by the program Caranua set up to help us and even if you appeal to the so called independent appeals officer your will be refused and your only course of action is to the high court which of course they know not one survivor could afford to take a high court action.
We shouldn’t forget for one second that the Vatican knew about the abuse taking place in Ireland and throughout the world.
We shouldn’t forget for a second that the Vatican specifically wrote rules on how to cover up the abuse.
@Barry Somers: you can change the words ‘knew about, with ‘facilitated’
They still think they ‘can repair the damage caused’ which goes to show they still don’t understand the traumatic consequences of child sexual abuse. They still don’t get it! Unbeliebeable.
These are the same people the LoveBoth crowd genuflect before. Love Both indeed, when you are no longer a foetus they don’t care if the child is abused.
@A Piece of Chalk: One thing we know about the catholic church is they care about baby’s once they are born and they see the actual value of the child, of course they saw the financial value of them!
They were very profitable after all…..handy to sell off for a tidy profit.
@A Piece of Chalk:I was wondering who’d be first out with a comment linking the story to the coming referendum. It has nothing to do with it. The Irish Government called the referendum. It is not a contest between them and the Catholic Church. Many people of different Faiths and none are NO voters. I’m still waiting for someone to come up with ideas on how to handle the 96% of child abusers who were
NOT priests or Religious. I’m talking about fathers, uncles, mothers, close family friends. It’s to easy for people to hide behind the disgusting child abuse by priests and Religious and pretend that the greatest number of abusers were lay people.
@John Campbell: Look over there! It wasn’t just priests! Let’s focus on someone else.
What you are forgetting is that it wasn’t just the priests who abused it was their colleagues and superiors who knew about the abuse and put their own organisation ahead of innocent victims and attempted in the most vile way to cover up the abuses.
If we were talking about postmen instead of priests and the management of An Post moved the abusers to other routes and covered up the abuse then no parent would let a postman anywhere near their child. The same should be the same for employees of the RCC Ltd.
@John Campbell: 96% is quite the accurate statistic. Would you mind sharing where you got that info?
@John Campbell: its harder to deal with a lone wolf operating like that . However when we are aware of a pack of wolves that protects and hides child abusers , murders and slave masters , we should probably try and deal with them also .
@John Campbell: you are suggesting that only 4% of child abusers were in the Catholic Church are you naive or in denial ?
@A Piece of Chalk: You’re about as smart as a piece of chalk.
@A Piece of Chalk: Total BS as usual. Huge majority of pro life people are non religious. You’re doing more harm to the pro choice side with your continuous insults and assertions that are just untrue at best.
Do you think you are influencing anyone?
@Gerard McConnell: Says the guy with pictures of him getting married and baptising his kid in a church plastered all over his face-book account.. Isn’t it a sin to deny god Gerard ? A big one ?
@John Campbell: The abuse of children is intolerable, whether by lay people or clergy. However, lay people do not enjoy the protection of an international organisation that covered up the abuse, protected, and still protects the perpetrators, hounded the victims who complained, all the while claiming to be an impeccable moral authority, guided by the ‘Holy Spirit’ and founded by Jesus Christ himself. There is also the fact that many of the lay abusers were victims of clerical abuse themselves. While this can never excuse them, it is open to the interpretation that they believed that their crimes were excusable because their moral guardians were behaving n exactly the same way.
@A Piece of Chalk: I am not a member of any group either yes or no or a member of any organised religion, I do have faith that got me through many very horrific days in my life. I am going to vote No not because of any group or religion, I would like to be a yes voter however, I do not trust our politicians to do the right thing by any woman. People forget that our politicians only do what is right for their votes and party politics, and like the religious who sold other people babies as a commodity and more than likely disposed of the ones that had no value, why would I in turn become like those people by allowing abortion on demand should the 8th be repealed. I want the 8th gone but not at the expense of healthy pregnancies as a form of contraception, I want it gone for women with a FFA, rape and incest.
@Charliegrl80:
I respect your choice however please note it’s not up to politicians or anyone else to do the right thing by women. All women are individuals, they’ll do the what seems right by themselves. It’s very important that everyone considers that.
@Vigo The Carpathian: stalker
At least when he comes to Ireland in August he will be writing a cheque to pay the multi-billion euro debt owed by his vile church to its Irish victims.
@mursim: and pigs will also do a flight formation over the phoenix park in the sky when he hands over the cheque
@mursim: I presume that’s why he’s coming.
The joke that is the church keeps giving! Sure they’ll all b on their knees praying and filling the money baskets Sunday!
A disastrous thing to happen for a truly disastrous Pontiff.
@GITBTSWORDS: he can wash as many prisoner’s feet as he wants but there’s one thing he’ll never scrub clean.
@GITBTSWORDS: Interesting how he’s regarded as one of the most humble and progressive Popes ever and Catholic fundamentalists hate him…
The pope should be banned from entering Ireland.
@David O’Hare: He should be arrested and brought straight in for questioning the second his ass hits Irish soil..God knows what other abuses he’s covering up.
What about the Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart , who says “ he would risk going to jail rather than report child sexual abuse!! If that’s his attitude then maybe that’s where he should be!
“…repair the damage caused…” – the damage to the victims and their lives cannot be repaired. I hope they weren’t referring to damage to the church.
A few hail marys…..be grand.
The Catholic Creeps ought to be condemned back to medieval history where religion and superstition belongs.
At least Pope Frances takes this serious, good to see hiding Child Abuse is not an option as it is almost as bad as the Abuse itself.
@PVD: I don’t think he is taking it seriously. Seems to me that’s it’s all damage limitation.
@PVD: he’s just lifting the rug for them to sweep them under it.
@Dave Martin: *that
@PVD: does he really?
So he’s going to compensate the abuse victims in Ireland with the approx 190million thats owed to them by the catholic church when he visits?
No?
Thought not.
@PVD: He accused the victims in this particular case of SLANDER for crying out loud..https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/19/pope-francis-victims-church-sexual-abuse-slander-chile
All religions are evil. Those who follow them are just as warped.
we are getting rid of 1 religion and allowing an even worse so called 1 into ireland. why are we allowing this to happen ,
@Elvis Polkasalad: Scientology needs to be shutdown in this country before they infect and bribe their way into power
Well the Irish state are paying for the pope,s visit even though it’s not a state one !!! So we’re not so far removed from those dark ages .
No chance they’ll go. Where would any of them get a living or protection like the church organised mob? All smoke and no fire
They should been handed over to the Civil authority and dealt with there and not Canon law,that’s why the Abuse is still going on and anyone within the Church, who is aware of it and does Report it should be done for with holding information.
An example for our HSE and politicians whose lack of action has ended in the death of 18 young women.
@Pat O’Looney: An example of what exactly? How to slander the victims of abuse? Maybe they’ll follow that wonderful example & we’ll all be saved.
Their anti repeal rhetoric is staggering. The cry about the unborn but when that child is delivered what do the do? The alienate if your LGBT or cover up abuse or discard into a cesspit.
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