Joe

Of course it doesn't make sense - that's the whole point! At this remove, it is very difficult to imagine what the power of the institutional church was in post-independence Ireland - and indeed, in a different way, before independence. That power was predicated on the church mediating God to the people, essentially, and was exercised in, no doubt, the sincere belief that the church needed to protect itself from its bad apples. The thought of protecting innocent children never entered their heads! The consequent secrecy became an enabling factor for abusers - in sexual and other fields.

Regards