Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley has made his first public appearance in Dublin as part of a team of high-ranking prelates appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to advise the Irish church on its response to the crisis over clergy sexual abuse of minors.
As "apostolic visitor" to the Archdiocese of Dublin, O’Malley will spend several days in the Irish capital speaking with victims, evaluating the effectiveness of new guidelines for protecting children from abuse, and meeting with laity and members of the church hierarchy.
He is planning a second trip for early next year.
In remarks following Mass at St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral this morning, O’Malley said he did not come to offer a "quick fix" to the enormous crisis in Ireland, where several bishops have resigned and a government compensation board has paid nearly $1 billion to victims of abuse, according to the Associated Press.
Rather, he said, according to a transcript of his remarks provided by the Archdiocese of Boston, "I come to listen to your pain, your anger, but also your hopes and aspirations."
O'Malley's statement was made at the cathedral following a Mass celebrating the Feast of St. Laurence O’Toole, principal patron of the Archdiocese of Dublin.
O'Malley arrived in Dublin Saturday, accompanied by three aides from the Boston archdiocese who played key roles addressing the sexual abuse crisis here.
He will stay for several days before heading to Rome, where the world's cardinals are gathering for a consistory in which 24 new cardinals will be created.
On the eve of the consistory, the College of Cardinals will meet to discuss a number of topics, including the church's response to the sexual abuse crisis, according to the National Catholic Reporter.
The Vatican has emphasized that the visitation to Ireland is meant to be pastoral in nature, and is not "a trial to judge past events" but rather a review of the church's institutional response to the crisis and an expression of the pope's concern for victims and the Irish church.
Plans for the visitation have been underway for some months, according to a Vatican news release announcing its start.
O'Malley, whose family is from County Clare and County Mayo, is proud of his Irish roots, and at Dublin’s Pro-Cathedral yesterday he spoke of his family’s “arduous” journey across the Atlantic in the midst of the Irish famine.
"What they did not leave behind was their Catholic faith and their great love for Ireland," he said. "I was raised with both."
O'Malley said that much has already been done in Dublin to address past crimes, assist victims of abuse, and create new procedures to ensure the safety of children.
"The task of the Visitation is to bring new eyes to the situation, to verify the effectiveness of the present processes used in responding to cases of abuse,” he said. “We are not here to reduplicate investigations or studies of the past."
He said he and his team would be available to meet with some victims of sexual abuse by clergy and invited them to request meetings with him through the Vatican's Apostolic Nunciature, or diplomatic office, in Dublin.
"We will attempt to communicate to them the apologies of a contrite Church and the pastoral solicitude of the Holy Father," he said.
SIC: BC/INT'L
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