HEALTH AND INTEGRITY IN CHURCH AND MINISTRY An ecumenical conversation on the task of rebuilding and renewal after the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse 27–29 August 2018, Melbourne, Australia Conference Papers Edited by Stephen Crittenden Franciscan Friars Acknowledgements The organisers of the Health and Integrity in Church and Ministry conference would like to thank our sponsors and presenting partners for their support: the Franciscan Friars, theRedemptorists , the Passionists, the Blessed Sacrament Fathers, the Diocese of Parramatta, Yarra Theological Union, the University of Divinity, Carroll & O’Dea Lawyers, Gilbert + Tobin Lawyers, and three anonymous donors. © 2019. Franciscan Friars (Australia). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior consent of the publishers. Published by the Franciscan Friars (Australia), Provincial Office, 47 Victoria Street, Waverley NSW 2024 Australia Citation: Crittenden, S. (ed.) (2019). Health and Integrity in Church and Ministry Conference Papers, Sydney, Australia, Franciscan Friars. ISBN: 978-0-646-59864-2 https://www.healthandintegrity.org.au iv HEALTH AND INTEGRITY IN CHURCH AND MINISTRY CONFERENCE PAPERS Table of contents Acknowledgements iv Foreword vii Professor Peter Sherlock Preface ix Dr David Leary ofm Introduction Stephen Crittenden xi How did we get here, and where are we? “… and what would God think?” Rebuilding pastoral health and integrity after the 2 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse (keynote paper) Desmond Cahill Time to get back on the donkey 13 Joan Isaacs A social science perspective 16 Kathleen McPhillips Theological implications Moving the church: a theology of possibility (keynote paper) 20 Richard Lennan The ecclesiology of the whole community must be called into account 29 Alison M Taylor Collateral damage Cultural change and renewal: challenges for religious life and the church (keynote paper) 36 Megan Brock Scapegoating and blind panic 41 Muriel Porter Unintended consequences: the Royal Commission, religion, and civil society 43 – a reflection on The Salvation Army John Cleary Healing and support for survivors, their families and affected communities My vision for a national pastoral healing and support scheme 50 Mary Monagle Proposal: a sacred space of spiritual healing for those who have suffered church abuse 52 in Australia Joe Johns Implications for governance and leadership Church governance and leadership (keynote paper) 56 Susan Pascoe Church governance and leadership: ‘An autocracy meets good governance’ 69 Peter Johnstone Implementing a company structure for Catholic schools: some early learnings 75 Maria Kirkwood HEALTH AND INTEGRITY IN CHURCH AND MINISTRY CONFERENCE PAPERS v Church law Canon law and the recommendations of the Royal Commission (keynote paper) 78 Rik Torfs Synodality and its consequences for canon law 93 Brendan Daly The Australian bishops and canon law 103 Ian Waters Implications for ministry Implications for ministry (keynote paper) 106 Janiene Wilson Supervision reframed: an offer of pastoral care by the church and a spiritual discipline 115 for the practitioner (keynote paper) Alan Niven The problem with supervision 126 Peter Maher Further reflections A statement on behalf of survivors and their supporters 130 Eric Hudson Reflections from the Vice-Chancellor 131 Peter Sherlock A visitor’s view of the conference 134 Robert A Orsi Appendices Appendix 1: Conference communiqué 138 Appendix 2: What is supervision? 143 Alan Niven Appendix 3: Royal Commission recommendations directed to religious institutions 145 vi HEALTH AND INTEGRITY IN CHURCH AND MINISTRY CONFERENCE PAPERS Foreword Professor Peter Sherlock Vice-Chancellor, University of Divinity The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was a watershed moment in the history of Christianity in Australia. Its repercussions will be felt for decades to come. Although the Royal Commission’s investigations encompassed many types of institutions, religious organisations were responsible for a majority of the incidents of abuse it uncovered. Moreover, the final report contains dozens of recommendations directly addressed to the churches. During 2016 and 2017, the University of Divinity began a conversation about what we might be called to do in response, as the Royal Commission completed its weighty responsibilities. This reflected our unique role as an Australian university dedicated to theological scholarship and to the formation of people for ministry in a wide variety of contexts, one composed of a network of partnerships with over thirty churches and religious orders. The conversation forced us to recognise with sorrow that the University’s staff, students and graduates included victims, survivors, perpetrators and bystanders. The University, founded in 1910, shared responsibility with the churches for the failure of our members to live out the theology that we teach and research. The path we found ourselves walking, then, is the Way of the Cross. The Royal Commission made us see that the path is covered by the broken bodies of victims and survivors; lives abused, humiliated and discarded, not only by the perpetrators, but also by our institutions, by our leaders, by us. We looked the other way, refused to listen, denied the truth, protected evil with evil, and hid from those who would hold us accountable. For those of us who are leaders and members of the churches and religious orders, newly held to account, it is not yet time to seek forgiveness and ask for absolution from our neighbours, or from each other. Our sorrow, our lament, our apologies, are only a beginning. Now we must seek to redress the wrongs we have inflicted, knowing always that, in God’s mercy, Christ walks ahead and behind, calling us to the way of truth and justice in grace. And so the University began to ask several questions: What changes might be required in training future generations of bishops, clergy and religious leaders? What implications would the Royal Commission’s findings have for the application of theological wisdom to the needs of the contemporary world? How could our teaching, research and engagement contribute to the reforms needed to prevent child sexual abuse in the future? Could we find ways to grapple with the immensity of the pain and suffering of victims and survivors of abuse documented by the Royal Commission, that would not render us merely inert, incapable of taking action? The Health and Integrity in Church and Ministry conference, initiated by a group of Catholic religious orders, emerged as the necessary first and systematic step in addressing these questions, following the release of the Royal Commission’s report and recommendations in December 2017. The conference brought together survivors, support groups, church leaders, and experts from a wide range of fields to name what needed to be done and to set an immediate and a longer term agenda. The conference participants walked gently with each other and wrestled mightily with complex issues. Topics ranged from the old and familiar to the new and innovative. Screening and checks for ministry, the training of religious and pastoral workers, the application and reform of church law were all discussed as essential tools to protect children and vulnerable people from harm, and to hold churches to account for their words and deeds. Prophetic challenges included professional supervision for clergy, the theological consequences of listening seriously to children, and the leadership of women in the churches. The ecumenical breadth of the conference was a vital and necessary aspect, directly confronting one of the biggest issues identified by the Royal Commission: the tendency of religious groups, even within the same denomination or organisation, to work in isolation from each other, free from external control HEALTH AND INTEGRITY IN CHURCH AND MINISTRY CONFERENCE PAPERS vii or accountability, and thus creating unacceptable gaps in the protection of the vulnerable. Could we find better ways, together, setting aside our autonomy and self-preservation in order to create a truly comprehensive approach across, as well as within, the jurisdictional boundaries of churches and states? The conference’s explorations bore direct relevance to a wider range of contemporary problems, from the exclusion of refugees to the plague of family violence, and the casual acceptance of harassment and abuse in our workplaces and universities to the failure to attend to the voices of Indigenous Australians. Three outcomes stood out for me. First was the necessity of a trauma-informed approach that puts victims and survivors at the centre of the agenda. Second was the surprising simplicity of some of the proposals, from governance and church law reform to cooperative initiatives to develop healthier habits in ministry. Third, conversely, was the enormity of the challenge of changing culture, especially those cultures that create an unhealthy clericalism and an absence of transparency. My hope is that the publication of the conference proceedings will stimulate the University of Divinity, the churches and religious orders, and the Australian community to leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the recommendations of the Royal Commission are comprehensively implemented. My prayer is that in so