Serial abuse by Spiritans unchecked for decades

HOLY GHOSTS:A REVIEW of child safeguarding practices in the Holy Ghost congregation has found "unacceptable failures" over decades to protect children from 47 alleged abusing priests in its schools here.

The Catholic Church’s child protection watchdog, the National Board for Safeguarding Children (NBSC), also expressed “grave concerns” that an abuser removed from ministry in 1995 was on an internet forum just last year. Another, unknown to the congregation leaders, was until recently engaged in temporary ministry despite not having the order’s required clearance document.

These cases raised issues about the effectiveness of monitoring in the congregation, the review said.

The Spiritans run several well-known schools in Ireland. Four are in Dublin – Blackrock College, St Mary’s College, Templeogue College and St Michael’s College. A fifth, Rockwell College, is in Co Tipperary.

While recent “commendable” initiatives by the current provincial leaders showed “a serious approach” to accepting responsibility for past failures and to ensuring the future safety of children, the board said more measures were required and made 16 recommendations in that regard.

It said the recent establishment of a monitoring panel whose members include a former garda was “welcome and necessary” but must be reviewed annually.

A total of 142 allegations of abuse by Holy Ghost or Spiritan priests were made between 1975 and 1994, but suspected abusers were often moved, within Ireland or abroad, provoking concern that other victims had yet to come forward here or in countries such as the US, Canada and Sierra Leone, the review noted.

The order’s files made “very sad reading”, it said. There were “unacceptable failures” to prevent abuse that children “could have been spared if action was taken” and the congregation’s current leadership had to carry the responsibility for those past failures.

One “prolific abuser”, who abused children over 13 years and was removed from ministry in 1995, was found on an internet forum in 2011. Despite concerns raised about the priest within three years of the abuse starting, he continued to abuse children for a further 10 years.

Another priest who abused 28 children between 1968 and 1993 was removed from ministry only in 1996. He has since died.

Files provided to the NBSC by the Spiritans showed serial abusers in schools “went undetected and unchecked, giving them unmonitored access to children during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s”.

Of the 47 priests about whom allegations were made between 1975 and 1994, just eight are still alive, with three out of ministry. Three Spiritans have been convicted of abuse.

The NBSC review focused on files related to living priests and measures by the current provincial leadership to ensure a safe environment for children. It noted Spiritans no longer teach in their schools but there are some Spiritan chaplains.

Some abuse allegations were reported by Spiritan leaders from 1994 on, but those made before 1994 were not reported to the Garda or health boards for years. While a 1996 Catholic Church document required reporting of abuse, some reports were not made until four years after that. All 142 claims have been reported by now.

In 1994, a new provincial of the order with a greater awareness of abuse removed some men from ministry and contact with children, the review said.

The NBSC has recommended the provincial leaders draw up a plan to reach out to abuse victims and their families and encourage other victims to come forward.

The board also recommended setting clear guidelines for raising and managing child protection concerns and prioritising the issue when recruiting brothers and staff. The Spiritans must be vigilant and have annual audits of all its communities, it said. Canon law investigations must be reactivated on all living priests against whom claims were made, it added.