You really have to wonder if our church has learned anything during this abuse crisis. 

On the 19th January this letter appeared in the Irish Times in response to a letter by Pat Buckley, Bishop of Larne, Omeath and the Isles.

Madam, – Pat Buckley (Letters, January 13th) inaccurately stated that, at the time of his “sacking”, Fr Brendan Smyth “was ministering in Down and Connor with the knowledge and consent of its then bishop, Cahal Daly”.

It should be noted that Fr Brendan Smyth, a native of Belfast, was not a diocesan priest and never held any appointment in the Diocese of Down and Connor at any time. – Yours, etc,

Fr EDWARD McGEE, Media Liaison Officer, Down and Connor Diocese.

Everyone reading such a letter will know that it's playing with words and definitions, and strict legal liability, and even then it still is untrue since he did have an appointment in Down and Connor - it just wasn't an appointment from the Bishop of Down and Connor.  Did he decide to write this letter himsel?  Was it cleared by the Chancellor or the bishop?

And Buckley duly responded - which I won't repeat, but also a letter from a former pupil of St Dominic's:

A chara, – Have these priests learnt nothing from the Ryan report? Fr Edward McGee’s weasel excuses that Fr Brendan Smyth may not have been a diocesan priest, etc, etc, etc, are irrelevant.

Smyth was my chaplain in St Dominic’s High School in Belfast during my time there.

I was oblivious to the fact he was abusing friends, classmates and neighbours while at the same time telling us how to be good Catholics in the classroom.

The time for splitting legal and clerical hairs is long gone. Priests like Fr McGee will only drive us, in disgust, to the “count me out” website sooner rather than later. – Is mise.


Here's the thing - I know it's hard to sit by and think, "well, these people aren't getting the context of the time" or "no prosecutions were brought" or "he was in a religious order".   For most people those have become subtleties and to be subtle is somehow to be an apologist or a liar.  Perhaps when you're in conversation with people you can take the time to explain things, and explore - but the letters page of a paper just doesnt' work for this sort of thing.

In a few weeks time the bishops will be in Rome.  I have no doubt most will present themselves as being there to help him understand the situation and offer advice.  I hope he tells them the episcopal conference is a disgrace.