Every event in life, even the worst tragedies, carry within them the potential for much that is also good. This truism ought be ranked somewhere up near the greatest insights of Christianity. The death of the founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ, from some points of view was one of human civilisation's greatest tragedies and gravest injustices where an innocent person was crucified and had his life taken away from him. Out of the tragedy though we Christians learned about the Resurrection — perhaps the single greatest sign of hope ever given to humankind. Now that a decision has been taken to close the Bethel Community there are two significant issues that remain to be dealt with. In today's editorial we seek to articulate what those issues are and to draw attention to who might have the responsibilities associated with addressing them.

The Pastoral dimension — healing the hurts and returning everyone to a place of spiritual and emotional equilibrium from which to restart their life…

At the first level, it should be evident that there are a significant number of not only individuals, but families, who have suffered various forms of emotional and perhaps spiritual injuries through the failings that unfolded at Bethel. Now that the decision has been taken to close the community that has helped take a lot of the heat out of the desire to punish those who were responsible for the failings that unfolded. In a very real sense those who were responsible already carry a burden that should provide some heart to all those who suffered. They will carry the burden and embarrassment of this tragedy for the rest of their days and face whatever form of accountability is in store for all of us for the mistakes and errors of judgment we make in our lives.

The prime and immediate focus has to be the welfare of all those individuals, and families, whose equilibrium was somehow disturbed by their involvement in the Bethel experiment, initiative or call it what you will. Following on from our lead commentary by a Melbourne personal injuries lawyer, Angela Sdrinis, yesterday [LINK] regarding the victims of sexual abuse in the wider Church, we have to collectively ask ourselves as a wider Church: what picture of Jesus Christ do we present to the world? Do we leave the victims to cope as best they can? Do we see it as their responsibility to restore equilibrium to their lives, or the lives of their families, or do we all share in a collective responsibility? How would Jesus Christ respond if he were the leader in a physical sense of our community in Perth, or in Australia today? Here at Catholica Australia we believe Jesus would take a very pastoral approach. He would be there with wise counsel, simply acting also as a listener as he listened to the story of the woman at the well.

We have received a short paper written by a person who has had long experience in pastoral care in a number of related fields. The writer was a member of the Bethel Community back near the beginning but left the community a number of years later. The writer has maintained an interest in watching the unfolding tragedy at Bethel in recent years and what they write today is largely geared to addressing the pastoral response that needs to be made…

The author of this pastoral response has chosen to remain anonymous but here is their thoughtful response of what needs to happen from a pastoral point of view.

The passing of the Bethel Covenant Community
The need for an adequate pastoral response

Perth's Bethel Covenant Community has fallen as from a huge precipice in recent days, and has now been declared defunct, ie: all activities being terminated. We trust however, everything but for the urgently needed archdiocesan-led ministry of healing and restorative pastoral care of its members.

In foundation times, the body had been characterized by heroic generosity, deep conviction and expressions of profound Christian witness. In its formative days however, its orthodoxy became blurred. And at the moment of being invited into foundational membership of the International Catholic Fraternity in 1990, it had fallen into troubled times. Direction of pastoral practice, leadership and lifestyle had emerged into a highly controlled culture, upheld by the arbitrary and derelict demands of the leadership.

Recognition of this phenomenon was a painful and personally damaging experience for the majority. Many took their cares and concerns to a variety of recognized Church leaders and eventually a formal review ensued. No shift occurred in lifestyle or modus operandi, from this review. A 70+ page paper of concerns from former members was presented to the Archbishop, and a delegation of leaders from the International Catholic Fraternity also approached the Archbishop with concerns about the pastoral practice of the Community. All evidently without result.

The Bethel experience impacted upon some 800 persons it is estimated, in its 28 year existence. And the scandal of this human reality continues now for many, with the present chronic lack of a vital and readily available matrix of pastoral resources available. And the hidden and deeply personal experiences of such loss and abuse are not readily identified, particularly for persons who have been required to repress natural feeling and response in such a community setting.

One would consider that in this complex circumstance, the Leader of our archdiocese would be present and enable a pastoral strategy that meets the complex needs of persons caught up in this matter. Nothing less than the recruiting of suitably professional persons, who are appointed to address matters of pastoral and procedural probity, prior to any ritualized fare-welling or reconciliation that may arise. The intent of this endeavour would be to support the wellbeing of persons, allowing their needs to emerge and be served, and to act as a witness to the vocation of Church as servant, healing agent and companion.

Sharing the responsibility…

Responsibility for this pastoral response needs to be shouldered first and foremost at the episcopal leadership level — by Archbishop Barry Hickey and Bishop Don Sproxton, secondly by those who have put themselves forward as leaders in the winding up of the affairs of the Bethel community, perhaps by other leaders who might put themselves forward from amongst those who had previously left the community and who might have expertise to contribute in assisting those who need to find a new starting point and place of emotional and spiritual equilibrium in their lives from which to continue their life journey. We would submit there are also responsibilities to be shared by the former and recent members of the Bethel community, including the former leaders albeit that in the case of some of the former leaders the levels of embarrassment endured might be too substantial that any practical assistance that might be rendered is well nigh impossible. Finally there might be responsibilities that rest on members of the wider Catholic community who had nothing at all to do with Bethel. They might be individuals who, by circumstance, happen to live close to people who had some connection with Bethel and who might be in need of a sympthetic ear or even some kinds of practical assistance. This group, we would suggest, might include the local media, particular the local Catholic newspaper which has been significantly absent in showing any responsibility whatsoever in the unfolding tragedy of recent months. Your audience, journalists of The Record, is "the people out there" not this continual game of looking over your shoulders and trying to please your archbishop and employer and make out that he, or the institution, is incapable of making errors of judgment. The newspaper might publish intelligent and professional articles that assist people in these sorts of situations (but puuleaze — no "rosary crusades" or "talks for the victims by Frs Flader or Deeter" and the sort of conservative/fundamentalist material that will cause greater injury and disenchantment to people who have already been driven away from what the Church has to offer by the sort of conservative fundamentalism that seems to have been part of the flaw in the Bethel model and which seems to have become the base fare of what this newspaper now offers its readership in Western Australia).

Particular pastoral responses…

From our perspective at Catholica we would suggest the pastoral reponse should include the following as an initiative jointly facilitated by the interim leadership group at Bethel (now presumably responsible for the winding up of the organisation) and the Archbishop and Bishop:

• An invitation is extended to all people who have been in some way affected through the Bethel community to some symbolic act of healing and reconciliation. (Possibly a Mass, but it might be a public meeting of some description. Some commentators who have seen this previous suggestion from me are fairly vocal in their criticism that any "liturgical-type events" or a "Mass of Reconciliation" be perhaps delayed until later down the track after the more practical commitment and bona fides have been well exhibited by the ecclesial leadership. That criticism has considerable merit. It should be self-evident from criticisms freely voiced on the various blog sites discussing the Bethel issue that the ecclesial leadership have some work to do in re-establishing their bona fides and credibility.)
• That the existing invitation be extended to all people who require professional assistance via counseling or other professional assistance for past injuries and hurts. (There is a perception, held rightly or wrongly by some, that the existing counselling is only available from professionals who are "on-side" with those who are non-critical of the former Bethel leadership. That perception needs to be dispelled.) The existing assets of Bethel if necessary should be channeled in this direction. If this is not a significant "charitable" need in the community that might benefit from the distribution of the assets of Bethel we might wonder what else would come remotely close in priority to this. It may well require some creative work by people skilled in law and business to bring this about but it ought be a priority.
• Where possible the leadership of any initiatives to assist in the ongoing care of people, and families, hurt by the Bethel experience should be open to representatives of the people who have been critical of the past leadership and who may have played a role in the activism that has finally brought these matters to public attention and forced a response from the institutional leadership of the Church and from the ongoing managers of Bethel. This would be an important gesture and symbol indicating a serious sense of sorrow for what has been allowed to develop.

The critical focus in the foregoing is, as far as possible, in allowing people to vent any anger in therapeutic ways and to as far as possible restore broken relationships (particularly in families) and to return everybody affected to a position of personal equilibrium. Yes, people will have to carry some sense of sadness for having become involved and there are personal responsibilities to be shouldered in these matters. The "Truth and Reconciliation Endeavours" undertaken now in a number of countries might provide some model for the pastoral work that needs to be undertaken.

The wider on-going lessons, particularly for the ecclesial leadership…

Archbishop Barry Hickey

The second area of concern is in the bigger lessons that might be learned from the Bethel experience for the wider community. There are suggestions from studies being undertaken around the world in these types of "covenant communities" that what happened at Bethel was not simply caused from the aberations of a particular individual, or a particular group of leaders. There are indicators that there are systemic problems with the entire model and with some of the underlying theology (understanding of the relationship God calls communities and individuals into) that require study by the ecclesial leadership of the Church. The institutional leadership would do themselves a huge favour by indicating in various public ways that they are aware of such studies, perhaps themselves encourage such studies through university research, and by themselves writing publicly on the Bethel and similar sorts of matters that have caused so much hurt to so many people. Archbishop Barry Hickey is well qualified in social work and more than most Bishops he should have more empathy and understanding than those without that sort of professional foundation. Such public addresses or papers might provide an indication to the wider Catholic community that the leadership of the Church are both taking these matters seriously and that they do understand the magnitude of the challenges the institutional Church faces with these "cult-like" groups that form from time to time.

Brian Coyne
Editor & Publisher
Catholica

We welcome comments in the forum from members, or as Letters to the Editor from Catholica subscribers, expressing your views on this commentary.

[Index of Editorials]