Sorry if we're hogging the forum a bit at the moment.....a question (Main Forum)

by Beehive , Brigadoon West Australia, Sunday, April 15, 2012, 06:24 (429 days ago) @ Brian Coyne

The Commission is given wide-ranging powers to require anyone to give evidence on the penalty that if they refuse to cooperate there will be a significant cost — like a lengthy stint in jail.

However here's something interesting.

The Catholic Church does not "legally" exist.

I support Judy Courtin in her call for a royal commission of inquiry into the Catholic Church cover-up of clergy sexual abuse in Victoria.
In her article (the Age 14/4) entitled "The truth deserves a commission" Judy listed the clever legal blockade that Pell's "Melbourne Response" established to protect itself from litigation by victims of sexual abuse.
The bulwark of this Eureka stockade is smart bit of legal creativity . Judy wrote:-
"The Catholic Church cannot be charged because it does not "legally" exist."
What a smart move! The legal eagles have designed a cute nonexistent entity. But when you really think it through, it poses lots of other legitimate questions like:-
• If you can't sue it, how come you can pay it?
• How come the Fed and State Governments can continue to pour billions of taxpayer dollars into the Schools, Hospitals and Nursing Homes of an entity that does not "legally " exist?
• How come all levels of Government are able to "gift" millions of taxpayer dollars for projects like the recent expansion/ repairs of St Mary's Cathedral in Perth (total about $42m) and the Basilica in Fremantle, both owned by an organisation that does not "legally" exist?
• How can anybody be so stupid as to believe in or attend a Church that does not "legally" exist?
This smart move may not turn out to be so smart if Govt. subsidies get turned off. But on the other hand turning off the water could be quite exhilarating, even perhaps a catalyst for a little bit of honesty.
Beehive