23rd Sunday B
Cobh
8 September 2024
My friends,
“Say to all faint hearts, Courage! Do not be afraid” so begins the reading from Isaiah, today.
In life we have many occasions when we are faint of heart and find it difficult to give ourselves a lift.
This week has been another difficult one for the Catholic Church in Ireland with the publication of the report on the abuse that so many children suffered in our schools over many decades. The report is 700 pages long and as I haven’t read it yet. I know no more than what the reports have said so I hesitate to comment other than to acknowledge the suffering that victims have lived with for a long time. They have been faint of heart in ways that few of us fully understand. They are in our thoughts and prayers today.
Over the years when this abuse was being brought into the open the religious orders and the Irish Bishops Conference established independently managed companies to assist victims and survivors of the abuse. One is called Towards Healing – it has focussed on and continues to offer free counselling to help survivors along a journey of healing. This work continues. Thousands have availed of it and benefitted greatly. The other entity is called Towards Peace. Here the focus is on helping victims through the shattering of trust in God, in Church and their spiritual life. A much smaller number of people have availed of this opportunity which is a pity. Experienced spiritual directors have made themselves available for this work and again continue to be available. Every person in religious leadership anywhere today is engaged with the fallout of the abuse of children or vulnerable adults. It is difficult and demanding work because the hurt and damage done is so deep and destructive.
On a more general level it is important that we keep in mind that the past is not some foreign country or the people involved, the perpetrators, are strangers – No! these are our own children and adults – they are us – our families. And we would be truly naïve to think that all such behaviour belongs in the dim distant past. We need to be alert to the reality that today children are at risk of abuse unless we protect them through our safeguarding procedures.
We know too that stresses in family life often leads to sexual assault and abuse – which is frequently kept hidden lest it bring shame and embarrassment to our family. Too often we excuse ourselves from not getting involved because it is “none of my business”. Whenever another is at risk of hurt or abuse it is all our business.
On hearing of another commission of enquiry we rightly wonder when will it ever be finished? There is a sense in which we’ll never be finished with this dimension of our past - as long as the hurt lives in our memory and thereby continue to impact on peoples lives today. Great empathy is required to help people heal and move forward with life. The Church will continue to bear the brunt of severe criticism. We must bear it with Christlike fortitude and do so mindful of so much good work done by dedicated religious. We try to hear again and indeed continually “Say to faint hearts, Courage! Do not be afraid”
