The Executive Summary reads like bad, politically correct, piece of social worker's tripe and likely to be 60% unreliable. However it likely that it is 40%correct. That is quite enough for the Irish Parliament to wind the Irish Catholic Church up as being a seditious organisation given to conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. Though Irish Government Departments seem to be co-conspirators that is not a reason for inaction. I had an uncle who was a Canon Lawyer. He told me many years ago that the level of proof required before a member of the clergy could be disciplined at the suit of a layman made the task virtually impossible. He also told me that the principle of repentance and forgiveness could be applied in such a way that there was virtually never any action against anyone. I went looking for those provisions on a Vatican website but found Canon Law an imprenetrable forest. Can anyone find them at all ? Monasticism in the 5th century seemed to cause the Latin Rite Church to take a wrong turn finishing up with compulsory celibacy becoming more or less effective in the 11th century. Has any scholar written a book on this?
And how well does all this sit with being in St John's Primary School in West Maitland, NSW, Australia in 1938 when 80 year plus old Fr O'Donoghue came into Sister Celestine's class causing her to look apprehensive. He sat in a corner while the lesson was proceeding - reading from charts - I could not read but knew the stories by heart - and suddenly he took a large handful of sweets out of the big pocket of his black half frock and threw them all over the class causing pandemonium. He then struggled out on his stick surprisingly sprightlyly. He was the only priest I have met who spoke with a full Irish brogue. He must have come to Maitland Diocese in about 1870 as quite a young man. What on earth has happened since then ?