The Christian Brothers have defended their decision to retain nine convicted child sex offenders within their religious order, saying they have a “Gospel imperative” to continue caring for all members, according to court documents filed in Australia.
The documents emerged as the Catholic religious order secured a court-ordered moratorium on current and future civil claims brought by survivors of abuse. The ruling has paused numerous legal proceedings while the order seeks to address what it describes as a severe financial crisis.
An affidavit submitted by Brother Gerard John Brady, leader of the Christian Brothers Oceania Province, states that the order has around 176 members, the majority of whom are based in Australia. Nine of those members are convicted child sex offenders, including one who is currently serving a prison sentence. The court also heard that other current members have faced allegations of child abuse.
Explaining the decision not to dismiss the convicted offenders from the order, Brother Brady said: “While dismissal of an offender from the Christian Brothers is an option open to us, I believe that it is not always the appropriate response.
“Accommodating known sex offenders in the wider community following their discharge remains a difficult issue for society. The [Oceania leadership team] believes that the Christian Brothers have obligations both to the wider community and to the offender.”
He said offenders who were removed from the congregation could become “a burden for taxpayers to shoulder” because many had no independent means of financial support.
Brother Brady also said the leadership believed it had a responsibility to “care for the needy”.
“Further … we have an obligation under canon law to care for all Brothers,” he said. “We accept that this philosophy requires us to continue contact with and support of those found to have committed serious criminal offences. We see this as a Gospel imperative.”
He acknowledged that the order’s position could be viewed as placing the interests of offenders ahead of survivors.
“We acknowledge that victims and members of the wider community may interpret such support as preferring the interests of offenders over victims. However, we are conscious of ensuring that our support of the Brothers does not undermine seeking justice for, or compromising the protection of, victims and survivors.”
The affidavit also argues that keeping offenders within the congregation enables the order to monitor their behaviour and support ongoing treatment.
“We believe that, if the Christian Brothers keep an offender within the Congregation, we are able to monitor his behaviour and support treatment,” Brother Brady said. “We take responsibility for doing so. We believe that society is more likely to be protected by an offender remaining part of the Congregation and being monitored.”
The legal proceedings also shed light on the order’s financial position. The Christian Brothers say they are unable to meet the growing number of compensation claims brought by abuse survivors and are proposing to sell their remaining property, valued at around A$217 million, with the proceeds to be distributed among claimants.
Court documents further reveal that Brother Brady met representatives of the Holy See in the Vatican earlier this year to seek financial assistance as part of a broader appeal to Catholic institutions over the province’s expected insolvency.
According to the affidavit, no financial support was forthcoming.
The Christian Brothers have also sought assistance from Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA), the independent organisation established in 2007 which now oversees former Christian Brothers schools across Australia.
Over the past decade, substantial property holdings have been transferred from the Christian Brothers to EREA. The Christian Brothers estimate the value of those transfers at around A$540 million, while EREA’s financial records indicate it has received land worth approximately A$891 million.
Among the transfers was a five-bedroom property in Strathfield, Sydney, which property records show was transferred to EREA for just one Australian dollar.
EREA has said it will not sell its properties to help fund compensation payments. However, the Christian Brothers have stated they will not seek to prevent survivors from pursuing legal action against the organisation.
The developments come amid continuing scrutiny of the Catholic Church’s response to historical child sexual abuse and the provision of justice and compensation for survivors.
