A Catholic support-group for victims of clerical sexual abuse has criticised Pope Benedict XVI for failing to give credit to secular agencies for uncovering abuse hidden by the church.
Voice of the Faithful Ireland says in the pope's weekend pastoral letter, he also ignored that, by giving excessive powers to bishops, the church had caused too many victims to be intimidated.
Voice of the Faithful's international network grew out of a meeting of 30 Bostonians in their parish during the abuse crisis in their diocese. Members describe themselves as mainstream Catholics.
In a statement, its Irish affiliate warmly welcomes aspects of Pope Benedict's pastoral letter - especially the recognition that a 'new vision is needed, to inspire present and future generations' here.
However, noting that Pope Benedict XVI blames secularism for weakening faith in Ireland, it criticises him for failing to give credit to secular agencies - such as the media, police and the civil courts - for uncovering abuse hidden by church authorities.
It calls for reforms to the church's internal law to bring about openness and accountability in how it is governed and to rid it of the culture of secrecy that has caused so much disgrace, distrust and pain.
Meanwhile, Bishop Willie Walsh of Killaloe has said that in a clerical child sexual abuse case in which he helped carry out an internal church investigation, parents always accompanied complainants who were minors.
In a statement welcoming Pope Benedict's Pastoral Letter, he also said that no commitment to secrecy was requested.
But he said that if he was dealing with the case today, he would go to the gardai about it even though he felt at the time there was no need to do so. He made that assessment when he was made aware that the diocese and the gardai had already been in communication about the case before the canonical process began.
The verdict of the Church court in which the then Father Walsh sat as a judge was that the abuser, William Carney, should be subject to the most severe penalty in Church law namely laicization or expulsion from priesthood.
Bishop Walsh said that he took part in the church court at the request of the then Archbishop of Dublin where Mr Carney served.
