Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has acknowledged what he said were the faults of the Catholic Church in the area of child protection and has urged partnership in eliminating all forms of abuse of children in Ireland and throughout the world.
In a homily at Mass in Dublin to mark World Day of Peace, Dr Martin said: “We need a Church which protects and we need a Church which becomes a model and a partner of protection.
“I would hope for example that in the year to come it would be possible to take up the appeal made by Pope Benedict at his Christmas Mass and work on the basis of partnership to eliminate all the various forms of abuse of children wherever they exist in our nation and around the world.
“As Archbishop of Dublin I recognise the faults of the Church in this area and I ask for pardon at the beginning of a New Year, especially where I personally have caused hurt.”
Dr Martin said he also knew of the desire of many “to work for a Church and a society more robust in their care and protection of children – right across the board and working together”.
The Archbishop's remarks today follow his expressions of extreme concern last week at a possible diversity in child protection procedures in Irish Catholic dioceses.
Dr Martin said if serious doubts were to persist "as to the coherence and consistency of child protection procedures in other dioceses" he "would find it necessary to implement his own system of accountable child protection". He had made this known to the Irish Bishops Conference and the NBSC, he said.
The NBSC is an independent body set up by the Church. In a report published last month it found that child protection practices in the Cloyne diocese to be "inadequate and in some respects dangerous".
Asked in an interview last week whether the Bishop of Cloyne, John Magee, should resign, Archbishop Martin said it was a matter for Bishop Magee, but the issue was bigger than one man.
Dr Martin delivered today's homily at Mass at 11am at the Church of the Assumption in Booterstown, Dublin.
President Mary McAleese and members of the diplomatic corps were in attendance.
The Archbishop also said the Church also needed to take a lead in the protection of the elderly.
“In times of cutbacks some will say that we cannot allow any group in society to be made into a special case; everyone must face the brunt of cutbacks together,” he said.
“There is a sense however in which our elderly today are the ones who have spent the best part of their lives bearing the burdens of the day, financial and in terms of personal commitment, and we owe them a special debt.”
Dr Martin said community was “not just about making the world more comfortable and happy and secure for me”.
“Community is a community which cares and which protects all aspects and values of life for the good of all: human values, environmental values, as well as the physical and social infrastructures which are there to serve all. Community cares, but community also costs.”
“Despite what people say, I believe that the smugness which often characterised the wealthy Ireland of recent years has not undermined or eliminated the spirit of community.
“I say that because I am privileged in my work to see the very special generosity of so many young people; a generosity marked by a genuine idealism and a tenderness which is at the same time unexpected and disarming.”
He called for prayers for young people “at this time of uncertainty”.
Dr Martin said a society was also needed which “actively protects from and rejects violence”.
“The violence in our society will not go away because we condemn it, much less because we feel that it is the problem of others or of another sector of society. Too many lives have been taken as victims of violence.
“Too many lives, tragically young lives, have been ruined through the perpetration of violence. The deadly business of the drug trade as well as the insidious world of ‘drug recreation’ are both nurtured and financed within a climate of total disrespect for the lives that are ruined.”
He said that in 2008, An Garda Siochána had “significant results” in the fight against drug-related crime and violence.
“The fight against violence requires a still greater mobilisation of society – teachers, sports organisations, community organisations, neighbourhood organisation, local authorities, and parishes – to build a strong community response to violence and those who perpetrate it or who cynically pilot it,” he said.