CLERICAL SEXUAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH : HISTORICAL, INTERNATIONAL AND AUSTRALIAN DIMENSIONS – Southern (Melbourne) SIP

In recent weeks, the Report into Child Sexual Abuse after five years’ study by an RMIT team led by Professor Des Cahill O.A.M. and Dr Peter Wilkinson has been gaining worldwide attention. It been described as the most comprehensive and most global study of the ‘Catholic catastrophe’ yet completed. Such abuse of children can be traced back to the New Testament and is found in the early decades of the history of the Australian Catholic Church in the 1800s. The two researchers will answer the questions: why did the sexual abuse of children by priests and religious occur? And why did the Catholic bishops react so poorly and so uniformly across the world?

PROFESSOR DES CAHILL
Educated in theology at the Pontifical Urban University in Rome and in psychology at Melbourne and Monash universities, Professor Des Cahill is Emeritus Professor of Intercultural Studies in the School of Global, Urban and Social Studies at RMIT University. He is chair of Religions for Peace Australia, deputy moderator of Religions for Peace Asia and a foundation member of the Victoria Police Multi Faith Council.

PETER WILKINSON
After completing seminary studies with the Columban Society in Sydney, Peter studied at the Gregorian University in Rome. His missionary work has been in in the Archdiocese of Seoul and Diocese of Andong in the Republic of South Korea. Peter has also taught in theological colleges in Sydney and Melbourne and has offered courses in Comparative Religion, Ministry in a Multicultural Society, and Christian-Buddhist Dialogue. More recently, he has been very active in Catholics for Ministry and in 2011 helped to found the Melbourne based Catholics for Renewal.