TAOISEACH ENDA Kenny has received “thousands” of messages from around
the world in response to his speech on the Vatican’s role in events
relating to the issue of child abuse, he said last Sunday night.
This
reflected the way people felt about this issue, he told the MacGill
Summer School in Glenties, Co Donegal.
Mr Kenny added he was “astounded”
by the number of clergy who had been in touch to say it was “about
time” someone in his position spoke out.
The Taoiseach received a
standing ovation when he finished delivering the annual lecture in
honour of Nobel laureate and former SDLP leader John Hume at the opening
session of the summer School.
Referring to his Dáil speech last
Wednesday on the Cloyne report, he said: “I made a few remarks this week
about children, which means a lot to me, I have to say.
“I just wanted people to understand that, when I say we live in a republic with laws and responsibilities and rights, I mean it.
“The
fact that I have had thousands of messages from around the world speaks
for itself about the impact and the way people feel.
“The numbers
of members of the clergy who have been in touch in the last few days,
to say it is about time somebody spoke out about these matters in a
situation like you are, has astounded me.
“I haven’t made any other comment except to say that we await the response from the Vatican.
“I
like to think that part of what we do in Government is to create the
environment where the innocence of children can develop naturally
through their formative years,” Mr Kenny said.
He said this was in
the hope, “that when they grow up and grow old they will look back with
a sense of pride and a sense of respect for where they came from”.