AUSTRALIA
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The Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse began its fourth hearing today. The lawyer representing the Catholic Church was afforded the courtesy of giving the opening statements – and he totally blew it.

Peter Gray (gray@blackstone.com.au), who bills himself as a specialist in defamation and related media matters, was an odd choice for the church. He sued the publisher of The Bulletin magazine for defamation, obtaining an ACT record damages verdict. His specialty could be seen as some kind of veiled warning to the media when reporting on the hearings.

His opening remarks caused many people to walk out of the hearing room in protest; many were very upset, to the point of tears while others simmered with rage. The reason? Mr. Gray quoted from the bible, specifically chapter 10 verse 14 from the gospel according to Mark, which refers to “suffer the…