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Christian Brothers to pay $250M for Irish child and sex-abuse claims

'We understand and regret that nothing we say or do can turn back the clock for those affected by abuse'

By
PATRICK REYNOLDS
,
IrishCentral.com Staff Writer

Published Wednesday, November 25, 2009, 7:58 AM
Updated Wednesday, November 25, 2009, 8:15 AM

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Christian Brothers to pay $250M for Irish child and sex-abuse claims | Irish News | IrishCentral





The Christian Brothers in Ireland have announced they will pay $250 million in restitution for child sex abuses that happened in their schools and institutions.

In a statement, the order said they agreed to the sum after the publication of the Ryan Report into sex abuse in Irish religious institutions. The Christian Brothers were widely considered among the worst offenders.

"We understand and regret that nothing we say or do can turn back the clock for those affected by abuse," the order's officials said.

'Our fervent hope is that the initiatives now proposed will assist in the provision of support services to former residents of the institutions as well as the facilities, resources and scope to protect, cherish and educate present and future generations of children.

"The range of measures follow the Christian Brothers' acceptance, shame and sorrow at the findings of the Ryan Report,."

The inquiry into abuses by priests in the Archdiocese of Dublin is expected to be published on Thursday. This report is said to outline a horrific series of incidents involving some members of the clergy and underage children in the Archdiocese.

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Christian Brothers to pay $250M for Irish child and sex-abuse claims | Irish News | IrishCentral


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Posted by jacersisityourself on Dec 09, 2009, 02:45 PM EST
Some of the money being paid out in compensation to abused people by these religious orders comes from Insurance Policies taken out in the ‘80s against claims being made when news of the abuses was barely breaking. While much of it is insurance money, much of the open land owned by religious orders and formerly used for quiet parkland walks, spiritual reflection and the training of GAA games, Rugby and other sports, was also sold to property developers in the recent past decades. The developers built and sold houses on these lands to the ordinary people of Ireland and in doing so passed on the price they paid for the little bit of land one’s house sits on to all house purchasers in Ireland. Therefore, in not an insignificant part, thousands upon thousands of house buyers in Ireland living on former religious orders-owned lands are paying or have paid the compensation money. Not a single Property Developer amongst them. irishathens is right – no money will ever compensate. I could play the divil’s advocate and ask, if that’s the case – why give money at all as compo? But I won’t ask; I don’t want to be an advocate of the divil.
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Posted by jacersisityourself on Dec 09, 2009, 02:42 PM EST
(Trying to re-post by splitting in two) ... Benbhoy asks (Nov 28) how did the CBs institution “accrue this wealth?” Not too late I hope for Benbhoy for me to say that the founder of the Christian Brothers of Ireland, Edmund Rice (now Blessed Edmund Rice), a normal but very wealthy businessman in Waterford City in the Southeast of Ireland, gave up all of his wealth to help the poor of Waterford, building small schools here and there to give them an education in the basic things of reading, writing and arithmetic (the “three R’s”). He called on others to do so and many joined him. Thus was begun the education of the rough, tough raggedy boys of the Ireland of the mid-1800s (nuns did it for the girls). The later schools were built with some State aid and significant donations by the public at large and so the movement grew. The Christian Brothers themselves are not wealthy – in all my years and to this day I’ve never seen a CB drive his own car, unlike parish priests. Even the RCC itself is not wealthy, in fact in the late 70s/early 80s, before the scandals, it was found to be virtually financially broke. (more... )
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Posted by jacersisityourself on Dec 09, 2009, 02:40 PM EST
I've tried twice to post a comment in reply to Bebhoy and irishathens but they've disappeared into the internet ether (again!). Ah well...
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Posted by irishathens on Dec 05, 2009, 05:24 AM EST
Offering money...thats degrading their victims further..We used you, abused you BUT we will offer money...These victims are not prostitutes that sold a service..they don't want your 'dirty' money...They want you publically named, shamed and jailed
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Posted by adfloatj23 on Dec 01, 2009, 02:16 AM EST
As the tippman said the majority of the christian brothers were good men and are doing what is right, But he forgot or maybe he is asleep to the fact that the christian brothers are a close order and as such you would have to be either stupid or blind not to know what was going on all those years, Where were the good old fellows when all this abuse was going on, Sorry that excuse wont fly, Disband the bunch and sell off all their assets and give back to the people they stole it from.
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Posted by wizardofoz on Nov 30, 2009, 09:14 AM EST
2B, you are nothing more than an apologist for paedophiles and pederasts! The facts are indisputable! ‘Ephebophils’ are predators (chronophilia) adutls, which prey on adolescents in the age range between 15years and 19 years. In almost all cases of abuse in the Roman Catholic Church, this was no so. You lie! The Roman Catholic Church is guilty, not just in Ireland, but on every continent on earth were it has covered up this systematic abuse of children entrusted to its care. It is the MOST EVILE Empire this world has ever known and is rotten from the head down. Every branch of its entrails is rotten! The ‘brothers’ the ‘Nuns’ the ‘Priesthood’ Bishops Cardinals and Pontiffs, the lot are rotten! They preach not the word of GOD and the love of Christ, but rather the love of money and power over the innocent. Corruption does not start at the bottom and work its way up; a fish rots from the head down. I feel a great sympathy for the many good and descent Roman Catholics who have had their faith shattered. But this has always been the way down through the millennia. Murder, intrigue, scheming and conniving are all part of the corrupted priestcraft that is a monument to the Church of Rome. All you hand wringers advising prayer as an answer to the grave injustice that invades the very sanctity of your faith are exactly what the criminals, which infest your church, believed in the first place. ‘Because of our standing, we will be protected.’ By refusing to hand these gross criminals over to the justice system the Church of Rome confirmed their protection within its remit, which in the 26 Counties was sacrament! Is it any wonder the Protestants of the north wanted nothing to do with such hypocrisy? Home rule was always going to be ‘Rome Rule’ history proves how right they were.


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