By Terence Neilan
AOL News
August 12 2010
http://www.aolnews.com/world/article/backlash-greets-pope-benedict-xvis-rejection-of-dublin-bishops-resignations/19591183
The Vatican has decided not to accept the resignations of two Irish bishops in the wake of a report that found widespread sexual abuse in the Dublin diocese boys' institutions, setting off a storm of complaints.
Eamonn Walsh and Raymond Field announced their decisions to quit in December, saying that by doing so they hoped to bring "peace and reconciliation" to the victims.
The two were auxiliary bishops in Dublin when a report issued in November by the Murphy Commission found that sexual abuse of boys was "endemic," but that the perpetrators had been protected by the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy.
 |
| Rather than accept the resignations of two Irish bishops following the release of a report critical of the Dublin diocese's handling of pedophile priests, Pope Benedict XVI reassigned them. |
The abusers were then allowed to take up new teaching positions "after their original victims had been sworn to secrecy," IrishCentral.com reported.
Pope Benedict XVI's decision to reassign Walsh and Field rather than accept their resignations was not publicly announced, but a letter sent out to priests in Dublin was obtained by The Irish Catholic.
"By this move, the pope has done irreparable damage to the already deeply damaged image of a selfish church hierarchy," the president of the U.S.-based Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, Barbara Blaine, said in a statement quoted by the Los Angeles Times.
"Even widespread documentation of the concealing of child sex crimes and the coddling of criminals won't cost you your job in the church," she added.
Deirdre Kenny, of a group called One in Four, which offers support to sexual abuse survivors, described the news as an "extraordinary decision by the Vatican," adding, "I think it certainly demonstrates the amount of conflict there is within the organization around accountability," the BBC reported.
Pope Benedict called Irish bishops to Rome in February to discuss the damning report, and later condemned the abusers and praised the victims, but he stopped short of criticizing the Dublin diocese hierarchy.
The leader of an Irish group called Survivors of Child Abuse, John Kelly, told The Associated Press: "So much was expected of the pontiff, and so little was delivered."
Kelly added, "The pope said that priests and bishops needed to surrender themselves to the demands of justice. Here were two of many who did surrender themselves -- and they've been refused.
"That sends out a signal that there is to be no change, no closure for victims and no accountability."
The Murphy Commission investigated allegations of child abuse from 1975 to 2004 against 46 priests in Ireland. Five bishops were criticized for their handling of the scandal, and two bishops' resignations have been accepted.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.