Child abuse

The Catholic Church has had hundreds of years to sort out child abusers, but as recently as a decade ago it merely moved them to another parish rather than tackle the root problem.

The McLellan Commission, to review abuse within the Catholic Church, consisted of 11 persons of note to pontificate on this abhorrence. The Very Reverend Dr Andrew McLellan was himself a Church of Scotland minister prior to resigning to become Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons from 2002 to 2009; only to be reinstated by the Church of Scotland after his time away.

He has risen in its hierarchy, and was chosen as the non-Catholic chairman of this commission.

He reports that three things will happen: “First and most important, a beginning will be made to heal the hurt and address the anger that so many survivors feel.

“Second, the Catholic Church in Scotland will begin to confront a dark part of its past and find some healing for itself.

“Third, a significant step will be taken to restore public credibility in the Catholic Church.’’

So the Catholic Church will pour oil on those abused, and on its own troubled waters. Its concern is simply for its own image. What about actually stopping the abuse, so that it will never happen again?

Malcolm Parkin

Gamekeepers Road

Kinnesswood, Kinross-shire