Surat Bapa Paus kepada Gereja Katolik di Irlandia

Pertanyaan:

saya hanya ingin bertanya………..

bagaimana tindakan Gereja terhadap kasus pelecehan seksual terhadap anak2 yg di lakukan oleh seorang imam? dan sy juga sempat membaca artikel bahwa pelecehan seksual terhadap biarawati yg juga di lakukan oleh Imam. kasus2 seperti ini telah membuat Agama Katholik menjadi agama yg tdk bermoral oleh tmn2 sy yg beragama Muslim..oleh karena itulah kehadiran Paus di inggris sempat menjadi ajang demonstrasi

[... dari Katolisitas: link kami hapus]

Satrya Ary Hapsara

Jawaban:

Shalom Satrya Ary,

Selengkapnya tentang sikap Vatikan terhadap kasus pelecehan seksual terhadap anak- anak di Irlandia, dapat anda baca dalam surat pastoral Bapa Paus Benediktus XVI kepada umat Katolik di Irlandia, silakan klik di sini.

Sebenarnya, harus diakui hal pelecehan tersebut adalah sesuatu yang sungguh sangat memprihatinkan semua orang, termasuk Bapa Paus sendiri. Ia mengatakan dengan jelas dalam surat tersebut bagaimana ia juga turut merasakan kekecewaan umat atas perbuatan beberapa imam di Irlandia yang terlibat dalam kasus pelecehan seksual. Menanggapi hal itu, Paus telah memanggil para uskup Irlandia untuk mendiskusikan langkah- langkah untuk mengatasi hal tersebut. Dalam suratnya kepada Gereja Katolik di Irlandia tersebut, Paus menuliskan pesannya kepada semua pihak, yaitu para korban dan keluarga mereka, para imam dan kaum religius yang melakukan pelecehan, para orang tua, kaum muda, kaum religius secara umum, para uskup, dan semua umat Katolik Irlandia.

Sebagai pemimpin tertinggi Gereja, Paus memohon maaf kepada para korban dan keluarganya, karena biar bagaimanapun Paus juga mengakui ketidakadilan yang dialami oleh para korban. Di samping itu, pesan yang cukup keras dinyatakan oleh Paus kepada para imam yang telah melakukan pelecehan. Paus juga mengajak para uskup untuk menyelesaikan masalah tersebut, dengan secara tegas menanganinya, demi menegakkan keadilan dan pemulihan bagi Gereja di Irlandia. Demikian sebagian kutipannya:

“I asked the bishops of Ireland, “to establish the truth of what happened in the past, to take whatever steps are necessary to prevent it from occurring again, to ensure that the principles of justice are fully respected, and above all, to bring healing to the victims and to all those affected by these egregious crimes” (Address to the Bishop of Ireland, 28 October 2006)…..

6. To the victims of abuse and their families

You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry. I know that nothing can undo the wrong you have endured. Your trust has been betrayed and your dignity has been violated. Many of you found that, when you were courageous enough to speak of what happened to you, no one would listen. Those of you who were abused in residential institutions must have felt that there was no escape from your sufferings. It is understandable that you find it hard to forgive or be reconciled with the Church. In her name, I openly express the shame and remorse that we all feel. At the same time, I ask you not to lose hope. It is in the communion of the Church that we encounter the person of Jesus Christ, who was himself a victim of injustice and sin. Like you, he still bears the wounds of his own unjust suffering. He understands the depths of your pain and its enduring effect upon your lives and your relationships, including your relationship with the Church. I know some of you find it difficult even to enter the doors of a church after all that has occurred. Yet Christ’s own wounds, transformed by his redemptive sufferings, are the very means by which the power of evil is broken and we are reborn to life and hope. I believe deeply in the healing power of his self-sacrificing love – even in the darkest and most hopeless situations – to bring liberation and the promise of a new beginning.

Speaking to you as a pastor concerned for the good of all God’s children, I humbly ask you to consider what I have said. I pray that, by drawing nearer to Christ and by participating in the life of his Church – a Church purified by penance and renewed in pastoral charity – you will come to rediscover Christ’s infinite love for each one of you. I am confident that in this way you will be able to find reconciliation, deep inner healing and peace.

7. To priests and religious who have abused children

You betrayed the trust that was placed in you by innocent young people and their parents, and you must answer for it before Almighty God and before properly constituted tribunals. You have forfeited the esteem of the people of Ireland and brought shame and dishonour upon your confreres. Those of you who are priests violated the sanctity of the sacrament of Holy Orders in which Christ makes himself present in us and in our actions. Together with the immense harm done to victims, great damage has been done to the Church and to the public perception of the priesthood and religious life.

I urge you to examine your conscience, take responsibility for the sins you have committed, and humbly express your sorrow. Sincere repentance opens the door to God’s forgiveness and the grace of true amendment. By offering prayers and penances for those you have wronged, you should seek to atone personally for your actions. Christ’s redeeming sacrifice has the power to forgive even the gravest of sins, and to bring forth good from even the most terrible evil. At the same time, God’s justice summons us to give an account of our actions and to conceal nothing. Openly acknowledge your guilt, submit yourselves to the demands of justice, but do not despair of God’s mercy.

8. To parents

You have been deeply shocked to learn of the terrible things that took place in what ought to be the safest and most secure environment of all. In today’s world it is not easy to build a home and to bring up children. They deserve to grow up in security, loved and cherished, with a strong sense of their identity and worth. They have a right to be educated in authentic moral values rooted in the dignity of the human person, to be inspired by the truth of our Catholic faith and to learn ways of behaving and acting that lead to healthy self-esteem and lasting happiness. This noble but demanding task is entrusted in the first place to you, their parents. I urge you to play your part in ensuring the best possible care of children, both at home and in society as a whole, while the Church, for her part, continues to implement the measures adopted in recent years to protect young people in parish and school environments. As you carry out your vital responsibilities, be assured that I remain close to you and I offer you the support of my prayers.

9. To the children and young people of Ireland

I wish to offer you a particular word of encouragement. Your experience of the Church is very different from that of your parents and grandparents. The world has changed greatly since they were your age. Yet all people, in every generation, are called to travel the same path through life, whatever their circumstances may be. We are all scandalized by the sins and failures of some of the Church’s members, particularly those who were chosen especially to guide and serve young people. But it is in the Church that you will find Jesus Christ, who is the same yesterday, today and for ever (cf. Heb 13:8). He loves you and he has offered himself on the cross for you. Seek a personal relationship with him within the communion of his Church, for he will never betray your trust! He alone can satisfy your deepest longings and give your lives their fullest meaning by directing them to the service of others. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus and his goodness, and shelter the flame of faith in your heart. Together with your fellow Catholics in Ireland, I look to you to be faithful disciples of our Lord and to bring your much-needed enthusiasm and idealism to the rebuilding and renewal of our beloved Church.

10. To the priests and religious of Ireland

All of us are suffering as a result of the sins of our confreres who betrayed a sacred trust or failed to deal justly and responsibly with allegations of abuse. In view of the outrage and indignation which this has provoked, not only among the lay faithful but among yourselves and your religious communities, many of you feel personally discouraged, even abandoned. I am also aware that in some people’s eyes you are tainted by association, and viewed as if you were somehow responsible for the misdeeds of others. At this painful time, I want to acknowledge the dedication of your priestly and religious lives and apostolates, and I invite you to reaffirm your faith in Christ, your love of his Church and your confidence in the Gospel’s promise of redemption, forgiveness and interior renewal. In this way, you will demonstrate for all to see that where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more (cf. Rom 5:20).

I know that many of you are disappointed, bewildered and angered by the way these matters have been handled by some of your superiors. Yet, it is essential that you cooperate closely with those in authority and help to ensure that the measures adopted to respond to the crisis will be truly evangelical, just and effective. Above all, I urge you to become ever more clearly men and women of prayer, courageously following the path of conversion, purification and reconciliation. In this way, the Church in Ireland will draw new life and vitality from your witness to the Lord’s redeeming power made visible in your lives.

11. To my brother bishops

It cannot be denied that some of you and your predecessors failed, at times grievously, to apply the long-established norms of canon law to the crime of child abuse. Serious mistakes were made in responding to allegations. I recognize how difficult it was to grasp the extent and complexity of the problem, to obtain reliable information and to make the right decisions in the light of conflicting expert advice. Nevertheless, it must be admitted that grave errors of judgement were made and failures of leadership occurred. All this has seriously undermined your credibility and effectiveness. I appreciate the efforts you have made to remedy past mistakes and to guarantee that they do not happen again. Besides fully implementing the norms of canon law in addressing cases of child abuse, continue to cooperate with the civil authorities in their area of competence. Clearly, religious superiors should do likewise. They too have taken part in recent discussions here in Rome with a view to establishing a clear and consistent approach to these matters. It is imperative that the child safety norms of the Church in Ireland be continually revised and updated and that they be applied fully and impartially in conformity with canon law.

Only decisive action carried out with complete honesty and transparency will restore the respect and good will of the Irish people towards the Church to which we have consecrated our lives. This must arise, first and foremost, from your own self-examination, inner purification and spiritual renewal. The Irish people rightly expect you to be men of God, to be holy, to live simply, to pursue personal conversion daily. For them, in the words of Saint Augustine, you are a bishop; yet with them you are called to be a follower of Christ (cf. Sermon 340, 1). I therefore exhort you to renew your sense of accountability before God, to grow in solidarity with your people and to deepen your pastoral concern for all the members of your flock. In particular, I ask you to be attentive to the spiritual and moral lives of each one of your priests. Set them an example by your own lives, be close to them, listen to their concerns, offer them encouragement at this difficult time and stir up the flame of their love for Christ and their commitment to the service of their brothers and sisters.

The lay faithful, too, should be encouraged to play their proper part in the life of the Church. See that they are formed in such a way that they can offer an articulate and convincing account of the Gospel in the midst of modern society (cf. 1 Pet 3:15) and cooperate more fully in the Church’s life and mission. This in turn will help you once again become credible leaders and witnesses to the redeeming truth of Christ.

12. To all the faithful of Ireland

A young person’s experience of the Church should always bear fruit in a personal and life-giving encounter with Jesus Christ within a loving, nourishing community. In this environment, young people should be encouraged to grow to their full human and spiritual stature, to aspire to high ideals of holiness, charity and truth, and to draw inspiration from the riches of a great religious and cultural tradition. In our increasingly secularized society, where even we Christians often find it difficult to speak of the transcendent dimension of our existence, we need to find new ways to pass on to young people the beauty and richness of friendship with Jesus Christ in the communion of his Church. In confronting the present crisis, measures to deal justly with individual crimes are essential, yet on their own they are not enough: a new vision is needed, to inspire present and future generations to treasure the gift of our common faith. By treading the path marked out by the Gospel, by observing the commandments and by conforming your lives ever more closely to the figure of Jesus Christ, you will surely experience the profound renewal that is so urgently needed at this time. I invite you all to persevere along this path.

13. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, it is out of deep concern for all of you at this painful time in which the fragility of the human condition has been so starkly revealed that I have wished to offer these words of encouragement and support. I hope that you will receive them as a sign of my spiritual closeness and my confidence in your ability to respond to the challenges of the present hour by drawing renewed inspiration and strength from Ireland’s noble traditions of fidelity to the Gospel, perseverance in the faith and steadfastness in the pursuit of holiness. In solidarity with all of you, I am praying earnestly that, by God’s grace, the wounds afflicting so many individuals and families may be healed and that the Church in Ireland may experience a season of rebirth and spiritual renewal.

14. I now wish to propose to you some concrete initiatives to address the situation.

At the conclusion of my meeting with the Irish bishops, I asked that Lent this year be set aside as a time to pray for an outpouring of God’s mercy and the Holy Spirit’s gifts of holiness and strength upon the Church in your country. I now invite all of you to devote your Friday penances, for a period of one year, between now and Easter 2011, to this intention. I ask you to offer up your fasting, your prayer, your reading of Scripture and your works of mercy in order to obtain the grace of healing and renewal for the Church in Ireland. I encourage you to discover anew the sacrament of Reconciliation and to avail yourselves more frequently of the transforming power of its grace.

Particular attention should also be given to Eucharistic adoration, and in every diocese there should be churches or chapels specifically devoted to this purpose. I ask parishes, seminaries, religious houses and monasteries to organize periods of Eucharistic adoration, so that all have an opportunity to take part. Through intense prayer before the real presence of the Lord, you can make reparation for the sins of abuse that have done so much harm, at the same time imploring the grace of renewed strength and a deeper sense of mission on the part of all bishops, priests, religious and lay faithful.

I am confident that this programme will lead to a rebirth of the Church in Ireland in the fullness of God’s own truth, for it is the truth that sets us free (cf. Jn 8:32).

Furthermore, having consulted and prayed about the matter, I intend to hold an Apostolic Visitation of certain dioceses in Ireland, as well as seminaries and religious congregations. Arrangements for the Visitation, which is intended to assist the local Church on her path of renewal, will be made in cooperation with the competent offices of the Roman Curia and the Irish Episcopal Conference. The details will be announced in due course.

I also propose that a nationwide Mission be held for all bishops, priests and religious. It is my hope that, by drawing on the expertise of experienced preachers and retreat-givers from Ireland and from elsewhere, and by exploring anew the conciliar documents, the liturgical rites of ordination and profession, and recent pontifical teaching, you will come to a more profound appreciation of your respective vocations, so as to rediscover the roots of your faith in Jesus Christ and to drink deeply from the springs of living water that he offers you through his Church….” (Pope Benedict XVI, Pastoral Letter to the Catholics of Ireland)

Maka, secara obyektif, kita melihat adanya langkah- langkah dari Paus Benediktus XVI untuk menangani hal ini. Sungguh, kita sebagai umat, perlu turut mendoakan para imam, agar mereka dapat hidup kudus. Di atas semua itu, kita perlu membedakan antara ajaran dengan orang- orang yang melaksanakannya. Yang bersalah di sini adalah orang- orangnya, yaitu sebagian dari para imam; namun ajaran Gereja tidak salah. Gereja memang terdiri dari “Saints and sinners” (para orang kudus dan orang berdosa), sehingga hal ini dapat terjadi. Kita tidak boleh melihat hanya kepada orang- orangnya (apalagi jika yang dilihat hanya orang- orang yang jahat/ berdosa saja), sebab jika demikian kita dapat menjadi kecewa. Kita harus melihat kepada ajaran Kristus, dan bagaimana seharusnya kita hidup sebagai para murid-Nya.

Jika kita mempunyai sikap sedemikian kita tidak mudah goncang jika melihat keadaan dunia ini yang memang kian memprihatinkan. Sebab kasus pelecehan ini tidak saja melibatkan para imam Katolik, tetapi juga para pendeta dari gereja- gereja non Katolik. FOX News memuat berita tentang angka kasus pelecehan seksual anak- anak oleh pendeta Protestan di Amerika -yang dilaporkan oleh hanya tiga perusahaan asuransi- yaitu 260 kasus/ tahun. Angka ini melampaui angka pelecehan yang dilakukan oleh imam Katolik, yaitu total 228 kasus/ tahun, berita selengkapnya klik di sini. Fakta ini tentu tidak dimaksudkan untuk membela oknum yang melakukan kejahatan tersebut di Gereja Katolik, sebab perbuatan pelecehan tersebut tetaplah sangat keliru/ dosa dan sungguh tidak sesuai dengan ajaran Kristus. Namun, fakta tersebut menunjukkan bahwa hal pelecehan seksual terjadi tidak hanya di Gereja Katolik. Nampaknya, masyarakat di dunia dewasa ini banyak yang ‘sakit’ dan Gereja tak terpisahkan dari masyarakat yang menjadi anggotanya, maka hal ini dapat terjadi. Padahal, jika seorang imam Katolik setia kepada ajaran Kristus, maka tidak akan ada kasus pelecehan seksual di Gereja Katolik; demikian pula di gereja Protestan. Jadi problemnya bukan ajarannya tetapi beberapa orang yang tidak setia melaksanakan ajaran imannya.

Agaknya kita perlu mendoakan dunia ini, yang telah dikoyak oleh banyak tindakan kejahatan, baik dosa seksual, maupun tindakan kekerasan lainnya, termasuk perang, pembunuhan dan terorisme yang juga sama- sama keji di mata Tuhan.

Maka, daripada saling menyalahkan atau saling menunjuk siapa yang lebih berdosa (lih Yoh 8:2-11), lebih baik kita menilik ke dalam diri kita sendiri, dan melihat, apakah yang dapat kita perbuat untuk memperbaiki keadaan dunia ini, walaupun hanya dalam bentuk yang kecil dan sederhana. Marilah memulai pertobatan dan mengusahakan kekudusan dari diri kita sendiri, sebelum kita ‘menularkannya’ kepada anggota keluarga kita, dan lingkungan pergaulan kita. Mulailah dari sekarang untuk mendoakan para imam dan para pemimpin Gereja agar mereka dapat menjadi teladan kekudusan bagi umat-Nya.

Semoga Tuhan memberikan rahmat-Nya kepada kita agar kita dapat dengan arif menyikapi hal ini. Semoga kasus- kasus semacam ini dapat malah memurnikan iman kita, dan menjadikan kita menjadi semakin rendah hati, dan semakin mau berjuang untuk hidup kudus di hadapan Tuhan.

Salam kasih dalam Kristus Tuhan,
Ingrid Listiati- katolisitas.org