PETER DE ROSA,
Sir, - An institution is corrupt when the élite who run it put it before the needs of the people whom they are supposed to serve. For 15 years, Father Tom Doyle (Opinion, March 26th) has warned us that the Catholic Hierarchy is corrupt in its tolerance of clerical sex abuse.
In the light of Jesus's warnings about the fate of those who scandalise his little ones, the way in which bishops, our supposed shepherds, allowed wolves with clerical collars into the sheepfold is terrifying. It didn't need Solomon to tell them that the rape of a child was a crime as well as a sin next in gravity to murder. Why did they not inform the police? Thousands of children would not have been abused if bishops had acted as every citizen, let alone every Christian, should.
Prelates such as Cardinal Law of Boston have admitted they made mistakes in furtively moving abusive priests around and paying out millions to their victims on condition of secrecy. They are now calling for zero tolerance of abusive priests. Catholics in Boston prefer to call for zero tolerance of bishops who aided and abetted clerical predators. In particular, they want Cardinal Law to resign.
But has not the Pope played a key role in prolonging clerical abuse? Fifteen years too late, he, whose speeches fill nearly 200 volumes, has finally spoken of the scandal, but in words so few and so cryptic his aides had to confirm that he was referring to priestly sex abuse of young people. History will record, I think, that John Paul's silence on this matter mirrors Pius XII's refusal in the Holocaust years to mention the word "Jew". - Yours, etc.,
PETER DE ROSA,
Ashford,
Co Wicklow.
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Sir, - As an Irishman, living for 13 years in the US, I am writing to express my outrage at the ongoing revelations of sexual abuse by members of the clergy of the Catholic Church in both countries,and the ongoing abuse of power/authority by the Hierarchy in both countries - and in the Vatican - in what now appears to be a global conspiracy of silence to cover up and deny justice to the victims of such abuse.
I was myself a victim of sexual abuse by a Catholic priest in in the 1950s.
Does the Catholic Church not accept the teachings of Jesus Christ, when he talked about not giving scandal/offence to children? Such scandal also includes the ongoing cover-ups and the lack of leadership to tackle these serious crimes, as shown by the Pope's comments last week, buried in a bigger, more wide-ranging document.
Yours, etc.,
JOE DUFFY,
Flowers Crossing,
Lawrenceville,
Georgia,
USA.