By Kitty Holland and Mary Fitzgerald
The Irish Times
December 8, 2009
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/1209/1224260353816.html
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| The papal nuncio, Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza, after his meeting with Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin. Photo by Eric Luke |
PAPAL NUNCIO: THE VATICAN will issue a “strong response” to the Dublin diocesan report after Pope Benedict meets Archbishop Diarmuid Martin and Cardinal Sean Brady on Friday, papal nuncio Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza has said.
Speaking after a 45-minute meeting with Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin yesterday, Archbishop Leanza expressed shock at the report’s damning findings. He pledged that communication between the Catholic Church and the Irish Government would be improved in the future “to avoid misunderstandings”.
Archbishop Leanza described the meeting as “serious” and “meaningful”.
He said the Vatican felt “ashamed” for what had happened. “I express my shock and dismay and certainly I understand the anger of the people and the suffering of those who have been abused, so we certainly condemn this . . . If there was any mistake from our side we always apologise for this,” he said. Archbishop Leanza stressed that there was “no intention” not to co-operate with the commission of investigation. But he added: “I think [it] is clear that mistakes were there. So no one would like to cover up. It is much better that what has been wrong emerges.”
The papal nuncio acknowledged during the meeting with Mr Martin that he should have replied to a letter from the commission formally. “He did indicate that he did regret he didn’t acknowledge the letter that he received,” the Minister said afterwards.
Archbishop Leanza told reporters that he felt a response was not required as he believed the letter, which contained extracts from the unpublished report, had been sent to him solely for information purposes.
Asked why the Vatican had not responded to the Dublin diocesan report or the earlier Ryan report, Archbishop Leanza said time was needed to examine the contents.
The Holy See was “studying carefully” the findings, he continued, and the Pope “will take any action that is necessary.” Mr Martin said he had conveyed to the papal nuncio the Irish public’s “deep anger and outrage” over the report and its “horrific and appalling litany of abuse on generations of young children in the Dublin archdiocese.
He also demanded full co-operation from the church in relation to the forthcoming inquiry into clerical abuse in the diocese of Cloyne. “My focus was very much on the need for a substantive response even now to the questions that have been raised . . . that there would be a comprehensive response to any question that might be raised, or asked, in relation to Cloyne,” the Minister said.
Mr Martin added that Archbishop Leanza had stressed during the meeting that there was no attempt to cover anything up.
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