The first phase of the Vatican investigation into the Irish Church's response to clerical sex abuse has concluded and a report is due to be published early next year.

A statement from the Vatican press office yesterday said that apostolic visitators to four metropolitan dioceses, as well as seminaries and religious institutes, had turned over their reports to the competent Vatican agencies, CNS reports.

In the coming months, the statement said, bishops and leaders of religious orders will receive notices on what they should be doing "for the spiritual renewal" of the Irish church.

The visitation was announced by Pope Benedict in March 2010 in a pastoral letter to Irish Catholics after an independent report showed widespread and historic abuse of minors on the part of church figures in the overwhelmingly Catholic country.

The report accused church authorities of covering up and enabling a "culture of secrecy" regarding the problem.

The Vatican statement said that no further visitations to dioceses and seminaries were planned, but that there may be additional visits to some religious communities.

It also said that by early 2012, the Vatican would publish a synthesis of the results of the visitation, as well as future prospects "with a view to the nationwide mission announced" by the pope in his letter.

The announcement came just days after Dublin Archbishop Diarmuid Martin expressed frustration with the Vatican for delaying the release of the findings of the report. He said on June 2 that he was "impatient to learn about the path that the apostolic visitation will set out for renewal for the Irish church so that our renewal will move forward decisively."

The BBC reports that victims of abuse have criticised what they call the slow response, some describing the process as a "holding operation" which proves the church has nothing to offer victims.

In a joint statement Margaret McGuckin, Jon McCourt and John Meehan said: "Six months ago, Survivors/Victims of Institutional Abuse sought a meeting with the visitation in good faith, but we have not heard a thing back from them since and we are sorely disappointed by the lack of any outcomes?

"Even this latest Vatican statement only offers an "overall synthesis", whatever that is, by early next year.

"That means nothing and offers nothing to the victims of child abuse on both sides of the border.

"Sadly, it seems clear that the Catholic Church is institutionally incapable of responding to the child abuse crisis, that is why Victims in Nth Ireland now look to the NI Executive to establish an independent public inquiry into child abuse in both church and state-run institutions."

FULL STORY

First phase of apostolic visitation in Ireland concluded, Vatican says (Catholic News Service)

Catholic Apostolic Visitation response criticised (BBC)

PHOTO

ipernity (CC 3.0)