AUSTRALIA
CathNews
Published: November 25, 2012
BY MICHAEL MULLINS
For many Australians, the first media mention of clergy sexual abuse was broadcaster Derryn Hinch’s (pictured) vilification of Ballarat priest Fr Gerard Ridsdale around 25 years ago. Arguably Hinch set in motion a dynamic that would see offending abusers targeted rather than the institution of the Church. The announcement of the Royal Commission has seen that reversed somewhat, with the outpouring of anger towards the institution of the Catholic Church, with particular focus on the seal of confession.
The debate about whether to target “rogue” priests or the institution is alive in Ireland, where a prominent player is psychotherapist and UCD academic Marie Keenan. Her most recent book is reviewed in an Association of Catholic Priests blog titled “Vilification of abusers won’t contribute to solution”.
If we want to understand sexual violence, we have to get to know its perpetrators and the worlds in which they were formed… For their part, media outlets have helped uncover abuse, but they have also contributed to the vilification of clerical offenders, fixating on the category of pedophilia (at the expense of other abusive scenarios), and fomenting moral panic.
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