SYDNEY (AUSTRALIA)
Morning Herald
March 5, 2019
I appreciate Reverend Michael Jensen’s sincerity in responding to the pain of victims of abuse and the distress of church members (‘‘Only hope for institutional Christianity lies in truth’’, March 5).
As one who has spent many hours with depressed and traumatised victims not only of church abuse, but also the more subtle and strangling experiences of the tendrils of church power, I suggest that the church could respond in a more constructive manner by examining how its institutional practices perpetuate the problems so decried. While you have only men in leadership positions claiming this is the created order for relationships between men and women, you have the potential for abuses of power to increase exponentially. – Josie McSkimming, Coogee
For all the doubters and defenders of Cardinal Pell I quote the remarks of his barrister, Robert Richter (who was actually present for the whole trial), in his apology for his inappropriate remark: ‘‘The seriousness of the crime was acknowledged at the outset by the concession that it merited imprisonment. In seeking to mitigate the sentence I used a wholly inappropriate phrase.’’ People who have difficulty with plain English should consult their dictionary. – Jan Carroll, Potts Point
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.