Fr. Brendan Smyth, c. 1965

Brendan Smyth (1927–1997) was a member of the Norbertine order of Catholic religious. Image File history File links Father_Smyth1. ... Image File history File links Father_Smyth1. ... 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Norbertines, also known as the Premonstratensians and in England, as the White Canons (from the color of their habit), are a Christian religious order of Augustinian canons founded at Prémontré near Laon in 1120 by Saint Norbert, afterwards archbishop of Magdeburg. ...

Originally from Northern Ireland, he became notorious as a child molester who used his position as a Catholic priest to obtain access to his victims. As a result, over a period of over 40 years, Smyth systematically raped hundreds^[1] of children in parishes in Belfast, Dublin and the United States. The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Roman Catholic priests in traditional clerical clothing. ... A parish is a type of administrative subdivision. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 54. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ...

The Norbertines, also known as the Premonstratensians, which Smyth had joined in 1945, were aware of Smyth's crimes as early as the late 1940s, yet they failed to report him to either the Garda Síochána (the Republic of Ireland's police force) or the Royal Ulster Constabulary (the RUC, the police force in Northern Ireland). Instead he was moved from parish to parish and between dioceses whenever allegations were made against him. In some cases, the order did not inform the diocesan bishop that Smyth had a history of sexual abuse and should be kept away from children. Emblem of the Garda Síochána. ... The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was name of the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. ... Pope Pius XI blesses Bishop Stephen Alencastre as fifth Apostolic Vicar of the Hawaiian Islands in a Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace window. ... A mitre is used as a symbol of the bishops ministry. ...

His arrest in 1994 led to the collapse of a Fianna Fáil/Labour coalition government when the incompetent handling of an extradition request from the RUC by the Irish Attorney-General's office led to a further delay of some months in Smyth facing trial. An award-winning UTV Counterpoint programme on the scandal by journalist Chris Moore, followed up by a book, accused the head of the Norbertines and the Archbishop of Armagh of mishandling the case, and the Norbertines of negligence and a failure to tell others of his longstanding child molestation, enabling Smyth to sexually abuse large numbers of children freely for forty years. When Smyth died in prison in 1997, the Norbertines held his funeral early in the morning, and covered his grave with concrete to deter vandalism. In the aftermath of the scandal, Ireland's Mass attendance rate plummeted from 68% to 48% in less than a decade. Many people attribute this decline, at least in part, to the child sex abuse scandal that erupted after the exposure of Smyth's crimes. The 27th Dáil was elected on November 25, 1992 but didnt meet until the new year when the 23rd Government of Ireland was appointed. ... Extradition is a formal process by which a criminal suspect held by one government is handed over to another government for trial or, if the suspect has already been tried and found guilty, to serve his or her sentence. ... New UTV Ident. ... Journalism is a discipline of collecting, analyzing, verifying, and presenting news regarding current events, trends, issues and people. ... In Christianity, an archbishop is an elevated bishop. ... The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Armagh was founded by St. ... Underwater funeral in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea A funeral is a ceremony marking a persons death. ... A caricature of Gustave Courbet taking down a Morris column, published by Le Père Duchêne illustré magazine Vandalism is the conspicuous defacement destruction of a structure or symbol against the will of the owner/governing body. ... A Medieval Low Mass by a bishop. ...

On October 27, 2005, a victim of Smyth succeeded in having the title 'Reverend' removed from his gravestone^[2]. October 27 is the 300th day of the year (301st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 65 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

• Roman Catholic sex abuse cases
• The Ferns Report

In the late 20th century, and early 21st, the Roman Catholic Church was confronted with a series of allegations of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests (who are all male) and by members of the various religious orders (both male and female). ... The Ferns Inquiry (2005) was an official Irish government inquiry into the allegations of clerical sexual abuse in the Irish Catholic Diocese of Ferns. ...

Further reading

• Moore, Chris (1995). Betrayal of Trust: The Father Brendan Smyth Affair and the Catholic Church. Dublin: Marino. ISBN 1-86023-027-X.

References

1. ^ RTÉ. Only the Devil: The story of Fr Brendan Smyth. Retrieved on 2006-10-20.
2. ^ Abuse priest has 'Rev' title removed from grave - breakingnews.ie