HEALING TOUCH
Kent Rosenthal SJ
Dealing with claims of sexual abuse by church members would seem to be the last job anyone would want to do. Sr Angela Ryan is part of a skilled team seeking to redress injustice and move all concerned towards healing.
Sr Angela Ryan has become the church’s open door to healing for many people who have been sexually abused by church personnel.
After years of service in various church ministries, Angela never imagined she would be called to be the executive officer of a committee dealing with sexual abuse by clergy, religious and other church employees and volunteers.
From being a teacher, school principal, then Provincial of the Brigidine Sisters in Victoria, and president of the Australian Conference of Leaders of Religious Institutes, Angela has seen the many faces of ministry and service. But none of this would prepare her for the challenging and devastating task currently at hand.
For the past three years, Angela has been executive officer of the National Committee for Professional Standards. The NCPS was set up by bishops and religious leaders in 1996 under the leadership of Adelaide’s Fr David Cappo to review and update the principles and procedures used by the bishops to deal with allegations of sexual abuse.
‘My mother always says, "I never brought you up to deal with this stuff"’, says Angela as she ponders this new work in her life.
While some Catholics are struggling to come to terms with the onslaught of sexual abuse cases being reported in the media, Angela is playing a crucial role as the first point of contact for some of the victims who have come forward looking for answers.
Angela has her heart and soul focused on what she sees as the real issue—healing—something which seems to have been overlooked in the rush to point the finger and define scandals. She offers a support role in her dealings with directors of all the religious institutes, answers media enquiries and makes sure that abuse victims are aware of what is happening to them as they start their journeys toward healing.
Angela says the current attention on the issue is very healthy.
‘I don’t find that a worry—I think it’s good that people will come forward so that we can get it out in the open and deal with it rather than having it under cover. And I think it’s good that the media are interested.’
In recent months the attention given to some cases has led to a greater number of people coming forward wanting to deal with abuse in the past.
‘A lot of people may have been holding on to something for many years, and they should be reassured that they will be heard if they come forward. Some people may have been holding on to a hurt because they didn’t want to upset family members who may hold the abuse perpetrator in high esteem. That sort of pressure on a person who has been abused is not fair, and they will have to deal with it sooner or later.’
Apart from an exhaustive administrative and managerial role as executive officer of the NCPS, Angela says her main task is talking to a lot of people.
‘I guess there is a dual role; that of dealing with past cases—the healing aspect, and initiating preventative measures and educating people—making sure it doesn’t happen again. I just don’t think [initially] we were aware of the implications of sexual abuse, and the very destructive effect that it has.’
While Angela is not a counsellor, one of her roles is to educate people so that further abuses are not committed.
‘I don’t think people were aware that priests and religious are people—and that priests and religious are vulnerable as well.’
Part of the solution is a changing model of church in which people have the freedom to question church personnel and to expect a response.
‘It’s about listening to people, realising the humanity there and the vulnerability there. And that means that it’s all about working together.’
Two official Australian church documents, Integrity in Ministry (1999) and Towards Healing (2000), have gone a long way in bringing about changes, she says. When dealing with the media or private inquiries by people who are unsure about the church process, Angela says she refers them to section 41.1 of the Towards Healing document which outlines how church authorities are to respond to the needs of a victim in ways demanded by justice and compassion.
She says much needless confusion has arisen over so-called silence clauses, whereas the Towards Healing document states in section 41.4 that ‘no complainant is required to give an undertaking which imposes upon them an obligation of silence concerning the circumstances which led them to make a complaint’. Work is in progress to remove any confidential clauses that have been included in documentation.
It is important to distinguish between the issues of compensation and confidentiality, she says, and to realise that people don’t have to stop talking about their abuse.
‘But sometimes in a mediation process there is a confidentiality to encourage people to talk freely—that’s a different matter. And there are a lot of cases where people just want to be heard and don’t want to go any further than that. And there are some people who would want confidentiality because they don’t want the hurt brought up again, or other people to know about it
‘A lot of the cases coming out now, especially in the media, have come about through people seeking solutions for other problems, and counsellors have found the reasons in the past abuse.’
One of the effects of the current media coverage of abuse cases is the healing that comes from acknowledging the past, she says.
‘The first thing most people want is to know that it’s not happening to anyone else. They want an acknowledgement that [the abuse] happened, they want counselling, and they want an apology so that healing can begin … a whole series of things, not just one thing. And if you don’t have those other things, then monetary compensation is not a substitute. Money is merely an acknowledgement in a practical way and may assist with further training or education.’
The first action Angela—and all those involved in the Towards Healing process—takes when approached by someone with a sexual abuse claim, is to encourage them, if there is criminal activity involved, to go to the police. The church will only begin its own proceedings if people do not wish to report a matter to the police.
‘I admire people who have the courage to speak out about what happened, because it can be very hurtful dealing with the past. It shouldn’t have happened and needs to be addressed now.’
People are then referred to counselling services, either within or outside the church according to their wish.
‘A number of the people who have been abused are very vulnerable people, and often were seeking help from someone they trusted. It is just so wrong that vulnerable people were chosen, as victims of abuse.
‘The worst part is that it happened to people who were very churched, because they were the people who invited the priest into their home—and the availability was there and the opportunity was there for these people [the abusers]. And that’s the betrayal of trust—it’s an added layer to what was happening in abuse by church personnel.
‘But it is also a fact that we have to face, and my policy is to
answer honestly and to tell to people what is happening.’
Angela is hopeful that changing models of church will result in a more
positive and integrated approach to ministry and that steps being taken
now to help victims will contribute to their healing. While nothing can
undo the events of the past, Angela says that all involved are striving
to do the best they can for those presently affected and to put better
structures in place for the future.
To contact Sr Angela Ryan write to
NCPS, PO Box 265, Springvale VIC 3171, Tel 03 9546 3520.
For statements from the Australian Catholics Bishops Conference on sexual
abuse issues go to their website at www.catholic.org.au/statements/sexual_abuse.htm
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