Diarmuid Martin refuses to back Cardinal Sean Brady over church sexual abuse
Ireland’s annual child protection update reveals 98 priests have had allegations of sexual abuse against them
Published Saturday, May 26, 2012, 7:57 AM
Updated Saturday, May 26, 2012, 7:57 AM
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Cardinal Sean Brady (R), flanked by Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin, talks with reporters at the end of a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in Saint Peter square at the Vatican December 11, 2009.
Photo by REUTERS
The Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has said he would not publicly back the Primate of All-Ireland Cardinal Sean Brady in the wake of further allegations that he failed to disclose information about sexual abuse in the Catholic Church during the 1970s.
Martin said the challenges facing the Catholic Church in Ireland were not solely about one person.
Speaking at the annual child protection update of the Archdiocese of Dublin he told the press: “Cardinal Brady has said that he is staying and that he has lots of support from people; I've never commented and I don't know anything of those details... made no comments on other bishops.”
Earlier this month Martin has said it would not be appropriate for him to comment on Brady’s position.
Brady has kept a low profile following the airing of a BBC documentary “This World: The Shame of the Catholic Church." The documentary raised concerns over the fact that Brady had failed to warn the church, parents and victims about notorious paedophile Father Brendan Smyth, during the 1970s.
After the documentary was aired, Brady faced calls from politicians and public figures to consider stepping down from his position as leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland.
The documentary revealed that Brady, along with two other priests, had received information from Brendan Boyland, a 14-year-old sexual abuse victim. The information he gave was not passed on.
Following the documentary’s airing on the BBC, Martin called on a full independent, international inquiry into the crimes of convicted, now deceased, paedophile Brendan Smyth.
Brady publicly apologized to Boland. He claims he has the support of his fellow clergy. However, last week only 20 out of the 150 invited priests from his diocese, Armagh, attended a pray meeting he had organized.
It has been revealed that 356 allegations or suspicions have been made against 10 unnamed "serial abusers" over the past six decades.
Other information which emerged at the annual child protection update of the Archdiocese of Dublin was that over the past 60 years, 356 allegations have been made against ten unnamed “serial abusers” in the Church. Five of these members of the clergy were convicted and two of them have since died.
Further details reviewed include the fact that in 2011 there were four allegations made against priests. Over the last 70 years, 98 priests have had allegations against them.
The gathering also heard that so far the sexual abuse crisis in the Church has cost them over $19 million (15.2m euros).
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eiriamach | May 28, 2012, 09:21 AM EDT
RE: the discussion of Martin as Primate. Regardless of whether you think highly of Archbishop Martin, why would you want to see the Primate position continued? The 'hierarchy'-- which allows priests and bishops to pass responsibility up the line-- is part of the problem, and simply replacing the personnel will make no difference. I'm not trying to exonerate any individuals; Sean Brady is guilty of sickening failures. But consider the role that the structure plays in enabling those failures. It allowed Brady to deny having any "authority" to act on reports by victims he interviewed, and as an aging man, he still does not see that he was wrong not to take responsibility simply because there was someone in "authority" above him. Anyone serious about real reform must question this structure of "authority" that allowed criminal sexual abuse to continue for decades. The Gnostic Gospels tell of Jesus' warning, "Do not lay down any rule beyond what I ordained for you, nor promulgate law like the lawgiver, or else it will dominate you" (G of Mary 4:9). Hierarchy dominates the conscience.
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DrMcHugh | May 27, 2012, 10:49 PM EDT
A correction to my previous note - Archbishop Martin of Dublin spoke in 2011 at Marquette law school on behalf of the victims of clergy sexual abuse.
The writer "Bythebay" does not seem to be aware of the fact that Dr Martin was out of Ireland for most of his priestly life. When he returned to Ireland and learned of the widespread sexual abuse by some clergy, he immediately got the police involved to investigate and make the predators accountable. The Pope, when known as Cardinal Ratzinger, was the head of the office that dealt with priest sexual abuse cases for 24 YEARS, before he was Pope. As Cardinal and as Pope, he wanted the secrecy and denial of child abuse by priests to continue. Secrecy and denial by the church were part of the culture of the RCC for centuries. Neither the Pope nor other members of the hierarchy, who were part of the problem, wanted to be made accountable for their crimes. Pope Benedict XVI has not admitted his role in allowing priest sexual abuse of innocent children to flourish world wide. I do not think highly of the Pope. I do think very highly of Archbishop Martin and his courage to do the right thing for the victims, even when the Pope wants to hide and claim diplomatic immunity to protect himself from prosecution for complicity in priest sexual abuse and protection of the predators.
Sincerely, Dr Rosemary Eileen McHugh, Chicago
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Bythebay | May 27, 2012, 04:54 PM EDT
Martin has been a priest for decades when the abuse was going on and had to know about it through the clergy's old boys' network. He should be shifted out to a monastery and relieved of any administrative duties. Brady should be in jail. The Pope sent Sean O'Malley from Boston to straighten out Brady and Martin re: their compliance with reporting abusers. Obviously the Pope does not think highly of Martin and should not.
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Intercessor | May 27, 2012, 01:05 PM EDT
If anyone should get the job of Primate of ALL Ireland, it should be Dr. Diarmuid Martin. Will the Vatican reward him for his honesty and integrity? I rather doubt it! Nor do I believe that the Vatican will elevate Dr. Martin to the position of Cardinal, since he doesn't play by the Vatican rules of "Omerta," or silence! I do believe that Dr. Martin is the ONLY living human being in Ireland, who can save the Church, if it's not past saving (and I rather doubt that it is!) Comparing and contrasting the actions of both Cardinal Brady and Archbishop Martin, I would like to ask you all, "Who is the most Christ-like?" That should be obvious and should dictate, who should be in charge!
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eiriamach | May 27, 2012, 09:04 AM EDT
"Blame the victim(s)!" Women have dealt with this canard since day one. No one should be surprised to see someone like SeamusMor apply it to the rape of children by churchmen. Disgusting!
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barneyjo | May 27, 2012, 08:45 AM EDT
@SeamusMor - Not so, there is no shame in seeking compensation; its called justice. We are told are we not "AS YOU SOW, SHALL YOU REAP" or "AN EYE FOR AN EYE". This the Holy Spirit at work; calling those to account who have been charged with the care of our church and who have failed so lamentably, in so many ways, in so many places. So many warnings through the ages from so many messengers; so many ignored. So no Seamus, this is God calling time on a badly run church, leading to its renewal. Of course I could be wrong, but I dont think I am. Ultimately the future will tell all :)
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KatieMurphy | May 27, 2012, 12:05 AM EDT
Amazing how we still see people making excuses for the church, eg SeamusMOr and others. I bet many of these type of posters somehow work for the church and realize their income is at risk. What really is at risk is their salvation.
BTW its these attitudes within the church that led to the unimaginable horrors going on re children, most likely ever since about 10000 when the church forbade priests to marry............You can make all the excuses you want, but God knows all and those who excuse the horrible crimes are as guilty as those who did them and the heirarchy who hid them...............No wonder the church is all but dead in Ireland and most of western Europe, the sooner the better...........Supporting the church is simply a way to get yourself on the superhighway to purgatory or hell.
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SeamusMor | May 26, 2012, 11:23 PM EDT
Yes. Greedy victims. Individuals are responsible for their own behavior, not the Church. Suing the Church, instead of the poor abuser, was a naked money grab from a perceived deep pocket. Shame on anyone who sued the Church, especially the lawyers who enabled them. The lawsuits are every bit as shameful as the abuse itself~
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McNamara31 | May 26, 2012, 05:04 PM EDT
SeamusMor …"greedy lawyers and greedy victims" Greedy victims? Remember the church never took a (Christ like) lead to deal with the abuse of little children; rather they were dragged, kicking worldwide to be accountable for decades of abuse. So please don’t try to make the huge institution that is the RC Church a victim when they were clearly the perpetrator of crime and cover up.
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SeamusMor | May 26, 2012, 04:16 PM EDT
The Catholic Church is the oldest and largest organization on Earth. Its direction and policies change as nimbly and often as a super tanker or the rules of chess. First and foremost abusing a child is a sin, and it was on that primary level action was originally taken in cases of child abuse. In time the Church learned that some of those who had sought and received absolution for their sins, and were given a fresh start in a new assignment, sinned again., and again. The awareness of a pathology behind the sinful behavior led to sending those who had abused children into treatment, after which was the hope that the sinner being cured of a disease. For decades of centuries the Church was a law unto itself, having primary jurisdiction over its leaders, rank, and file. His Holiness has acknowledged the errors of the past, and has now imposed a policy of reporting abuse, or even the suspicion of abuse to the appropriate civil authorities. To attempt to apply today's standards to the Cardinal's handling of matters in the 70's is unfair to say the least. Cardinal Brady has faithfully served God since taking his unbroken vows as a priest decades ago. There are too many urgent issues today to waste time and energy on hindsight and scape goats. Shame on everyone who has sued the Church for something done to them by a person. Money the Church could use for the poor, the sick, the homeless, for classrooms, books, and teachers is lining the pockets of greedy lawyers and greedy victims. There is nothing you can buy to erase the stain of abuse, so why try to cash in on it. Prostitutes make money for sex; no one else should.
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hermitTalker | May 26, 2012, 12:52 PM EDT
My post was refused since it did not address the Aarchbishop and Cardinal Brady situation. The headline and body of the story were absolutely contradictory. Some of your clomemtsn were off topic, going after Bernard Law of Boston for his presumed omissions there. Confusing the Church's own respect for the human rights of accused people, records kept at a time when civil authorities were not considered entitled to them and there were no laws reqjiring reporting as is still the case, while the pope and Irish and US bishops are way ahead of them all.
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DrMcHugh | May 26, 2012, 11:19 AM EDT
In 2010, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin spoke at the Conference on Restorative Justice, for the victims of clergy sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church, at the Law School of Marquette University in Wisconsin. Archbishop Martin has the courage to speak the truth to power, even at the risk of his own future in the RCC. He strongly believes that the truth will set us free. I pray that other members of the hierarchy throughout the world will follow his leadership, and replace secrecy and denial with truth and accountability, as we all strive to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, for the greater glory of God.
Sincerely, Dr Rosemary Eileen McHugh, Chicago
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CelticQueenUSA | May 26, 2012, 11:05 AM EDT
Bishop Martin has every right to keep his own counsel about Brady. The less he says the better. When there is nothing good to say, stay silent. I admire Marin's ethics and pray for him daily. God bless him and may God also deal with the ones who enable this horror to continue.
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Seanmor | May 26, 2012, 10:05 AM EDT
Cardinal Seán Brady is NOT entirely to blame for everything that is wrong with the Romal Church in Ireland.
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