MAYNOOTH, Ireland, SEPT. 28, 2010 (Zenit.org).- The Vatican’s congregation of bishops has invited Ireland’s four archbishops to Rome to prepare for the apostolic visitation that Benedict XVI announced in his letter to Irish Catholics regarding sexual abuse by clergy.
Cardinal Seán Brady, archbishop of Armagh; Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin; Archbishop Dermot Clifford of Cashel and Emly; and Archbishop Michael Neary of Tuam will be in Rome next week for the preparatory meetings.
They will meet with the four apostolic visitors who will come to their archdioceses.
Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, retired archbishop of Westminster, will conduct the visit to Armagh; Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston will visit Dublin; Archbishop Thomas Collins of Toronto will visit Cashel; and Archbishop Terrence Prendergast of Ottawa will visit Tuam.
A statement from the Irish Bishops’ Conference today noted that the apostolic visitation is “to offer assistance and to contribute to the spiritual and moral renewal of the Church in Ireland. The visitation will facilitate reflection, evaluation and review of Church life.”
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On the Net:
Pope’s letter to Irish Catholics: www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/letters/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_let_20100319_church-ireland_en.html
