Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Parish meetings on Cloyne Report ‘just a proposal’

CATHOLIC priests have downplayed the possibility of parish hall meetings to discuss the fallout from the Cloyne Report into clerical child sex abuse, claiming it is simply a proposal.

The Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) met last week to discuss the damning report and its findings, and further meetings are likely.

Last week, the Irish Examiner reported that priests in the Diocese of Cloyne had yet to officially discuss reaction to the Cloyne Report, two months after it was published.

However, at a meeting of the ACP in Ovens, Co Cork, last week, it was proposed that special parish meetings be held in the diocese to address public concerns over the report’s findings.

The meeting also observed anger and frustration over the role of the hierarchy within the Church following the scandal.

However, ACP spokesman Fr Eoin Whooley, of Barryroe parish in west Cork, said the idea of public parish meetings was just at the proposal stage.

"It was a suggestion that was made that will be worked on," Fr Whooley said, adding that although it was "the principal" proposal made at the meeting, no discussion had taken place as to where any such meetings would be held.

"It would be up to individual priests to decide whether they think it is suitable," he said.

"I would be intending to go to the parish assembly in September and see what they think of it."

The reason for the lack of meetings within clerical circles to discuss the Cloyne Report was attributed to the holiday period, but more meetings are now likely to take place.

Last week, a spokesperson for Dr Dermot Clifford, the Apostolic Administrator of Cloyne, confirmed that a meeting would take place in Cloyne in September.

At last week’s meeting, a number of issues were raised and noted in the minutes on the ACP website. Statements included: "We as priests need to take more responsibility."

"We accept a flawed process for the appointment of bishops."

"A culture of ‘move the problem’ rather than confront or address a problem, has gone on too long. There is a need to study ‘clericalism’.

"What is it? How does it do damage?"

The minutes of the meeting also record: "Morale is low — heads are down", "there is a lack of trust among priests with each other", "‘bishops are a closed group", "they don’t trust priests", "they see priests who speak or challenge as being disloyal".

There have also been calls for Bishop John Magee, who was in charge in Cloyne during the period covered in the report and who was strongly criticised within its pages, to personally address some of the issues arising from the findings.