INTERVIEW:Auxiliary bishop Ray Field explains why it would be 'wrong' of him to resign
Asked about being named in the report, auxiliary Bishop of Dublin Ray Field began by saying:
“Firstly, let me apologise wholeheartedly and unreservedly to the victims of child abuse for any hurt they might have suffered as a result of what priests have done to them. I really, really feel ashamed. I feel horrified by what the report has said about us and I can only offer my sympathy, my deepest sympathy, my deepest regret and my repentance at what has happened. I apologise to them and to their families.”
The report said the bishop believed Fr Sergius (one of the priests named in it) had an alcohol problem and was not aware of abuse complaints against him. Is this true?
“Well, the only thing I can add to what’s in the report is that I didn’t have all the facts. I did not have all the facts and there was, without a doubt, a deficit of the sharing of information in Archbishop’s House. There’s no doubt about that and, even though I’m an auxiliary bishop and whatever, I didn’t possess all the facts.
“They weren’t made known to me, therefore how could I make a full, proper judgment on that particular person? So I only took what I knew. But I might say that on that one, when it did emerge about his alcohol problem and what he did, I certainly visited the families involved. I wrote to them. I called round to see them and I expressed my horror and that the diocese would do everything it could in its power to make sure this was addressed.”
The report found that information given by the bishop to priests in the parish to which Fr Benito was assigned in December 2003 “was certainly not complete or sufficiently specific”. Was it?
“Well I disputed that actually, having worked with him and done all the necessary investigation and whatever. I did supply [the information] and I said it to the commission. But I accept fully the commission’s report, without a shadow of doubt. I accept everything that the commission has said in the report.
“But I maintain that I did inform the parish priest fully and subsequent events proved that not only did I have a meeting with the priests involved, all of them, in a reasonably short space of time. In fact, that priest’s father died actually in the meantime. so we delayed it a little bit.
“And also, because of subsequent events and the appointment to school boards, whatever, they came back to me and I said No, it cannot be. And, I mean, the events show that I did in fact inform him and I said it to the commission at the time. But, be that as it may, I fully accept the report.”
The commission report was also concerned “about the failure to inform Bishop Field about the advisory panel’s perception that he had delayed in reporting a complaint of child sex abuse”. Why was it so concerned?
“Well, the only thing I can say is that the reason I didn’t report it soon enough was because I didn’t know there was any inference of child sex abuse in it and when I went to see the police myself about it and got the full information and then realised that the people involved were underage, I went immediately to the archbishop and told him. I went to the chancellor and told him that this was the case and handed it over then . . .
“I didn’t know that the advisory panel disapproved of what I had done and said, what my stance was, until long afterwards. In fact, until the report came out I didn’t know it. That information was never shared with me and I think it should have been shared with me.”
The commission said that a lot of what the bishop learned came from its draft report. Was that the case?
“That’s absolutely true actually. I didn’t know the full extent of all the cases, and only when I read the report did I realise the horror of the whole thing, the incredible extent of the whole thing. And that’s appalling.”
There had been suggestions that Bishop Field should resign.
“Well I don’t think I should resign. If I felt that I did anything wrong I would resign, of course, but I don’t believe I’ve done anything wrong. I feel certainly my integrity has been impugned but I do not believe that I did anything wrong and therefore I do not feel that I should resign. I think it would be wrong, actually, of me to resign under those circumstances.”
Was he satisfied that no other children suffered by his action or inaction?
“I’m absolutely . . . certain no children suffered by a result of my action or inaction. Absolutely certain of it. I can say that without any hesitation whatsoever.”
Was he “contaminated by association”?
“Well, it’s possible you know. I mean, it is possible but I will still stand on my integrity and on my record of what I have done. I do not fear it and I stand by it. And if other people want to say it about me, well, that’s another matter. But I certainly stand by what I’ve done.”
