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63-674: The five members were Deirdre Clancy, Nuin Dunlop, Karen Fallon, Ciaron O'Reilly and Damien Moran. The Pitstop Ploughshares group spent between four and eleven weeks in Limerick Prison . They went to trial in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in March and October 2005 on two counts of criminal damage , €100 and US$ 2.5 million. Penalties, if convicted, would have been a maximum of ten years imprisonment. Their March 2005 trial collapsed on

126-559: A royal commission found that "Christian Brothers leaders knew of allegations of sexual abuse of children at four Western Australian orphanages and failed to manage the homes to prevent the systemic ill-treatment for decades." During the 2016 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Ballarat, it was found that 853 children, average age 13, had been sexually abused by one or more Christian Brothers. Child abuse complaints had been made against 281 Christian Brothers, and

189-557: A case against the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse , seeking to prevent the commission from naming brothers accused of child abuse. Justice Sean Ryan declared that individual alleged perpetrators of abuse would not be named unless they had already been convicted In May 2009 a report was issued by the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (CICA) on allegations of child abuse committed on thousands of children in residential care institutions run by various religious institutes for

252-619: A college education. St. Patrick's Christian Brothers' College, Kimberley St. Joseph's Junior Novitiate, Baldoyle was where trainee brothers went to complete their second level studies, normally proceeding to St. Mary's in Marino to train as school teachers. To-day there is a nursing home there, and there are over 1000 brothers buried in the cemetery in St. Patrick's, Baldoyle. In 1925 the brothers bought St. Helen's, Booterstown which became their administrative headquarters and novitiate. Around 1968, land to

315-466: A donation of €30 million to a government trust and €4 million donated to provide counselling services. Playing fields owned by the organisation and valued at €127 million would be transferred to joint ownership of the government and the trust that runs former Christian Brothers schools. In 2019 former Brother John Gibson was convicted and received a prison sentence for his role in abuse in Wexford CBS in

378-515: A lasting notoriety through revelation of physical and sexual abuse of the boys by some of the Brothers there, with evidence of sexual abuse and extreme physical punishments going back to the 1930s. According to the commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, between the years 1940 to 1970 15 children died there while in the care of the Christian Brothers, from causes including tuberculosis. The school

441-784: A presence in Melbourne , Australia in 1868, in 1875 in Brisbane , Australia and, in 1876, a school was commenced in Dunedin , New Zealand. In 1875 a school was opened in St. John's, Newfoundland . In 1886 the Pope requested that they consider setting up in India, and a province of the congregation was established there. Christian Brothers' College Kimberley (“CBC”), the first Christian Brothers' College (School) in South Africa,

504-460: A religious community dedicated to teaching disadvantaged youth. The first school, on Waterford's New Street, was a converted stable and opened in 1802, with a second school opening in Stephen Street soon after to cater for increasing enrollment. Two men from his hometown of Callan , Thomas Grosvenor and Patrick Finn, soon arrived to aid Rice in his makeshift schools, with the intention of living

567-565: A school for the deaf. A community was founded in Limerick in 1816, followed by establishments in several of Ireland's principal towns. The Holy See formally established the congregation in 1820. This, too, was an unusual event, since the Christian Brothers were the first Irish congregation of men approved by a charter from Rome . Some brothers in Cork chose to remain under the original Presentation rule and continued to be known as Presentation Brothers,

630-448: A separate congregation but also recognising Edmund Rice as its Founder. The congregation of Irish Christian Brothers spread to Liverpool and other parts of England . These new ventures were not always immediately successful. Two brothers had been sent to Gibraltar to establish an institute in 1835. However, despite initial successes they left in August 1837 on account of disagreements with

693-918: Is a list of the Superiors General of the Congregation of Christian Brothers. In recent times, "Congregational Leader" has been the title used. The Irish Christian Brothers were among the strongest supporters of Irish republicanism , the Irish language revival , the Gaelic Athletic Association , and Gaelic games . In most Christian Brothers' schools in Ireland, Gaelic football , hurling and handball were encouraged and there were even examples of boys being punished for playing "foreign games", like soccer. Many GAA clubs were founded by Christian Brothers, many developing from schools teams, with many GAA clubs using

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756-537: Is based in Rome (and led by the Congregation Leader). These provincial and congregational teams are elected on a six-year basis at Congregation chapters . Restructuring has taken place in the congregation to account for the changing needs, in particular the declining number of brothers in the developed world. The three provinces of North America (Canada, Eastern American, and Western American Province) restructured into

819-537: Is not an attempt to synthesise two systems of thought' that are hopelessly incompatible, but rather 'a realisation that the premise of anarchism is inherent in Christianity and the message of the Gospels '." O'Reilly participated in anti-war disarming actions against US military aircraft in 1991 and 2003 for which he was criminally prosecuted, serving a prison sentence for the first incident. The legal case arising from

882-623: Is of Irish descent. He received a BA degree majoring in literature and history. He took part in the 1980s civil rights , social justice and free speech movement in Queensland, Australia, opposed to state Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen . O'Reilly was working as a relief teacher in Queensland when he first came into contact with the Catholic Worker Movement (CW), founded in the United States by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin during

945-667: The Great Depression . O'Reilly subsequently founded Brisbane's West End Catholic Worker community along with Jim Dowling and Angela Jones, aiming to address social issues including youth homelessness among the Aboriginal community. He described the CW as composed of three practices which together constitute a life of integrity : living in intentional community , practicing the works of mercy , and nonviolent prophetic witness . He aims to personally enact this through living in community with

1008-602: The Irish state . This report found that sexual abuse of boys in institutions run by the Brothers was common. In response, the Irish ecclesiastical province issued a pledge to pay 161 million euros toward a fund set up to compensate male and female victims of such abuse both in their institutions and in those run by other religious institutes. As of 2013 , the Christian Brothers in Ireland continued to seek out-of-court settlement for historical claims initiated by survivors of sexual assault by Brothers, committed in day schools managed by

1071-478: The Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry issued a report on the St. Ninians residential school which had been run by the Christian Brothers between 1953 and 1983. The report concluded that the school was a "a place of abuse and deprivation particularly from 1969 until the school closed in 1983. The Christian Brothers were able to "pursue their abusive practices with impunity" and the evidence against them

1134-671: The US penal system . After his return to Australia, O'Reilly took part in the "Jabiluka Ploughshares" group action which disabled uranium mining equipment in the Northern Territory of Australia in 1998. On a visit to Australia in February 2006 O'Reilly was pulled aside on arrival in Brisbane and interviewed by two Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) officers. O'Reilly publicly accused ASIO of heavy-handed tactics, saying, "I felt it

1197-481: The University of Dublin since 1974. In 2012 Trinity College Dublin became a co-trustee with the Brothers of the institute. The Brothers' schools include primary, secondary and technical schools, orphanages and schools for the deaf. A number of these technical schools originally taught poor children trades, such as carpentry and building skills, after which they could progress to gain apprenticeships and employment. As

1260-451: The 1980s & 1990s. On 22 June 2020, he received an additional four years after pleading guilty to a number of assault and sexual assault charges. Mary O'Toole writes that "In total, 820 allegations of abuse are recorded in relation to those 132 schools." "303" people were accused "84%" of whom were Christian Brother members, "14%" were lay staff and a further "2%" were other Clergy. Of those allegations "16 members and former members of

1323-493: The 1991 Gulf War , O'Reilly was a member of the "ANZUS Ploughshares " group which attacked a B-52 Bomber which was on 20-minute scramble alert, at Griffiss AFB near Utica, New York . Their actions put the aircraft out of action for the next two months at the height of the US bombing campaign in Iraq. Together with the other members of the group, he was arrested and sentenced to 13 months in

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1386-598: The 2003 group action, known as the Pitstop Ploughshares , resulted, after three trials in Ireland, in a landmark acquittal. Following the case, he remained involved in peace activism in the United Kingdom and Australia. Implicit in Christian discipleship is an anarchist orientation towards power. We are called not to lord it over people but to serve them. Jesus refuses to become king and ushering his kingdom through

1449-705: The Catholic nation idea. In the late 20th and early 21st century many cases were exposed of emotional, physical and sexual abuse of children in the Christian Brothers' care over a number of decades. Cases emerged in Ireland , Canada, the United States, Australia and Great Britain . The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse documented Christian Brothers' activities in Australia and in particular in Ballarat. 22% of Christian Brothers across Australia have been alleged sexual predators since 1950, according to

1512-434: The Christian Brothers have been convicted of child sexual abuse", "5 lay staff have been convicted of child sexual abuse" and "1 member of the clergy associated with their school who was not a Christian Brother has been convicted, though the order is unsure if this conviction was for offences in one of their schools." In Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom, Christian Brother and former school principal Paul Dunleavy

1575-565: The Christian Brothers of Ireland in Canada (CBIC), was uncovered during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Multiple criminal investigations, a provincial Royal Commission of Inquiry (the Hughes Inquiry ) and an Archdiocese of St. John's inquiry (the Winter Commission ) resulted in criminal convictions and millions of dollars in court-imposed financial settlements. Compensation was provided by

1638-654: The Christian Brothers, sometimes by Lasallian organisations themselves. As such, Rice's congregation is sometimes called the Irish Christian Brothers or the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers . At the turn of the nineteenth century, Waterford merchant Edmund Rice considered travelling to Rome to join a religious institute, possibly the Augustinians . Instead, with the support of Thomas Hussey , Bishop of Waterford and Lismore , he decided to found

1701-445: The Congregation had paid A$ 37.3 million in compensation. The Royal Commission's final report of Catholic Church authorities in Ballarat was released on the 6th. December. The report found that 56 Christian Brothers had claims of sexual abuse made against them in Ballarat and that there "was a complete failure by the Christian Brothers to protect the most vulnerable children in their care". The response to complaints of sexual abuse

1764-557: The Diocese of Motherwell, the last Head teacher at St Ninian's Falkland , Fife, was sentenced to five years' imprisonment. His colleague Brother Paul Vincent Kelly, a former member of the Order and a retired teacher from Portsmouth, was given a ten year custodial sentence; both were convicted of the physical and sexual abuse of boys between the years 1979 and 1983. More than 100 charges involving 35 boys were made. The school closed in 1983. In 2021,

1827-700: The Edmund Rice Christian Brothers North America on 1 July 2005. The provinces that cover Ireland , Great Britain and the Congregational Leadership Team in Rome combined into a single European province on May 5, 2007, while the five provinces covering Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea combined into one Oceania province on October 1, 2007, The English Province is a registered charity . The Dublin Headquarters are in

1890-584: The National School system and vocational schools developed in the Irish Republic, the Irish Christian Brothers became more concentrated on secondary education. As of 2018, there were 872 Christian Brothers and 172 houses. In 2008 it was reported that not more than ten Christian Brothers were teaching in Irish schools, with the expectation that there would soon be none. This was contrasted with

1953-611: The South was used to build two new schools Coláiste Eoin and Coláiste Íosagáin . St. Helen's was sold in 1988. In 1955 Stella Maris College in Uruguay was established. In 1972 the alumnus rugby team was travelling in Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 when it crashed in the Andes , stranding survivors in freezing conditions with little food and no heat for 72 days; 16 of the 45 people on

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2016-538: The aircraft survived. In the 1950s, due to the number of brothers in Ireland, it was split into two sections divided into North and South by a line from Dublin to Galway. In 1967 the Christian Brothers had a membership of about 5,000, teaching in around 600 schools. The Christian Brothers teacher training centre at St. Mary's/Colaiste Mhuire, has become the Marino Institute for Education which has trained lay teachers since 1972 and has offered degrees validated by

2079-508: The book Christian Anarchism put it: "engaged in   ... protests, acts of civil disobedience and trials in England, Ireland, and his native Australia". O'Reilly has become one of the most visible exponents of Christian anarchism , both active in its practice and the theoretical exploration of its ideas. As the writer Alexandre Christoyannopoulos  [ fr ] quotes him as arguing, O'Reilly contends that Christian anarchism " '

2142-537: The campaigns in support of Julian Assange , Edward Snowden , and Ben Griffin , who became O'Reilly's godson. Congregation of Christian Brothers The Congregation of Christian Brothers ( Latin : Congregatio Fratrum Christianorum ; abbreviated CFC ) is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church , founded by Edmund Rice . Their first school opened in Waterford , Ireland , in 1802. At

2205-600: The charity is directed mainly to nine countries in Africa , where The Christian Brothers work on mission in development: Ghana , Kenya , Liberia , Sierra Leone , South Africa , Sudan , Tanzania , Zambia , and Zimbabwe . In Kenya , they support the Ruben Centre Additional funds are also raised for similar work in South America ( Argentina , Bolivia , Paraguay , Peru and Uruguay ) and India . The following

2268-520: The defence counsel, after extensive submissions and legal argument, on the applicability of the statutory " lawful excuse " defence. A unanimous "not guilty" verdict was returned on both charges. The Dublin jury of seven women and five men had deliberated for four and a half hours before deciding that all the accused should be acquitted. The defence case had been that all the defendants had conscientiously believed they were acting to save lives and property in Iraq and Ireland, and that their disarmament action

2331-519: The defence on day nine of the proceedings, after extensive submissions and legal argument, on the applicability of the statutory lawful excuse defence. After four-and-a-half hours of deliberation, the Dublin jury of seven women and five men returned and gave their decision that all the accused should be acquitted, as they were acting to save lives and property in Iraq and Ireland, and that their disarmament action

2394-481: The early hours of 3 February 2003: this group action became known as the Pitstop Ploughshares . Two earlier trials in 2005 had ended in mistrial; O'Reilly and four others (Deirdre Clancy, Nuin Dunlop, Karen Fallon and Damien Moran) were acquitted by an Irish jury on 25 July 2006. The third trial of the Pitstop Ploughshares started on 10 July 2006. Judge Miriam Anderson had agreed on Day 9 of proceedings with

2457-823: The example of Nano Nagle's Presentation Sisters, they were called " Presentation Brothers ". This was one of the first congregations of men to be founded in Ireland and one of the few founded in the Church by a layman. Houses were soon opened in Carrick-on-Suir , Dungarvan , and in 1811, in Cork . In 1812 the Archbishop of Dublin established a community in the nation's capital and by 1907 there were ten communities in Dublin , with pupils in excess of 6,000. The schools included primary , secondary and technical schools, along with orphanages and

2520-668: The grounds of Marino Institute of Education . A special community within this new European province will be based in Geneva , Switzerland, working to establish an NGO known as Edmund Rice International . The purpose of such an organisation is to gain what is known as a "general consultative status" with the United Nations . "This position allows groups the opportunity to challenge systemic injustice and to engage in advocacy work with policymakers on behalf of people who are made poor." As well as including Christian Brothers from provinces all over

2583-540: The home. He was appointed headmaster of a Melbourne Catholic boys school a few years after the religious order became aware of his abuse. In December 2012, the Christian Brothers school St Ambrose College , Altrincham, Greater Manchester, was implicated in a child sex abuse case. A former lay teacher was convicted of nineteen counts of sexual assault occurring between 1972 and 1991. St Joseph's Industrial School in Letterfrack , County Galway , Republic of Ireland received

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2646-575: The junior campus of St Patrick's College and St Alipius Primary School in Ballarat , Victoria . After investigation, Brothers Robert Best, Edward Dowlan and Stephen Francis Farrell were all convicted of sex crimes. Brothers Dowlan and Best were later transferred to the senior campus and continued to offend. Four of the school's brothers and their chaplain, Gerald Ridsdale , were accused of sexually assaulting children — all but one, who died before charges could be laid, have been convicted. In December 2014,

2709-579: The life of lay brothers . In the same year, Rice used proceeds from the sale of his victualling business to begin building a community house and school on land provided by the diocese. Bishop Hussey opened the new complex, christened “ Mount Sion ” on June 7, 1803, and pupils were transferred to the new school building the following year. The reputation of the school spread and across the next few years several men sought to become "Michaels". On 15 August 1808 seven men, including Edmund Rice, took religious promises under Bishop John Power of Waterford. Following

2772-406: The local priests. In 1878 the Brothers returned to the then Crown colony of Gibraltar . The school eventually flourished supplying education to the twentieth century. The " Line Wall College " was noted in 1930 for the education that it supplied to "well to do" children. Similarly, a mission to Sydney , Australia, in 1842 failed within a couple of years. Brother Ambrose Treacy established

2835-405: The mid-1960s, when over 1,000 Brothers worked in schools, with no shortage of new recruits. Geographically, the Christian Brothers are divided into several provinces that encompass every inhabited continent. The brothers within each province work under the direction of a Province Leadership Team. In turn, the entire Congregation operates under the leadership of a Congregation Leadership Team that

2898-521: The order in Ireland. Towards Healing was set up by CORI to offer therapy to survivors of clerical abuse; it is a Catholic organisation about whose independence there has been controversy. The Christian brothers in Ireland used the services of the L&;P group to set up an education trust. In late November 2009, the organization announced it would supply a €161 million (£145 million sterling) package as part of reparations for child abuse in Ireland. This includes

2961-472: The playing fields of the brothers' schools. They also run and sponsor The Rice Cup which was set up in 1944, and named after the order's founder, for post-primary hurling. They also sponsor the Westcourt Cup and Rice Shield. Many of the first Irish language textbooks were produced by the Christian brothers for their schools. Conor Cruise O'Brien called them "the most indefatigable and explicit carriers" of

3024-716: The poor, prison visitation, and direct action against war. Catholic Workers in Brisbane were also concerned about the threat posed by nuclear weapons and the uranium mining industry and its direct and indirect effects on those in the Third World . Together with other members of the Brisbane Catholic Worker, he took an active role in highlighting the involvement and complicity of the Australian government, corporate and military sectors in supporting Indonesia 's brutal and illegal 25-year occupation of East Timor. During

3087-526: The reason given for the move was to conceal the true reason for it and to protect the reputation of the Christian Brothers and avoid scandal and embarrassment." In February 2020, Rex Francis Elmer pleaded guilty to two charges of indecently assaulting boys at St Vincent's Boys' Orphanage in South Melbourne . He was removed from St Vincent's in 1976 after a welfare officer who inspected the orphanage complained that he had “interfered with” boys who lived at

3150-420: The royal commission. The commissioners concluded that the Christian Brothers "completely failed... to protect the most vulnerable children in their care" and that senior brothers–including Brother Paul Nangle, Ballarat's highest Brother in the 1970s–had deliberately misled police in more recent statements about their knowledge of abuse. There were allegations that during the 1970s sexual abuses took place at

3213-476: The sixth day when Judge O'Donnell called a mistrial , having made biased comments about a defence witness. Media were instructed not to report on the reasons for the mistrial until legal proceedings were completed. The October 2005 re-trial collapsed on the tenth day, after Judge Donagh MacDonagh agreed with defence counsel that his attendance at the United States presidential inauguration in 2001 of George W. Bush (along with other meetings he had with Bush when he

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3276-642: The time of its foundation, though much relieved from the harshest of the Penal Laws by the Relief Acts, Catholics faced much discrimination throughout the newly created United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland pending full Catholic emancipation in 1829. This congregation is sometimes referred to as simply "the Christian Brothers ", leading to confusion with the De La Salle Brothers —also known as

3339-458: The violence of the state. We become pacifist because we realise that Jesus was a pacifist; if he taught us anything on the cross he told us how to die rather than how to kill, and to suffer rather than cause suffering. O'Reilly 2010 , 2:15 Ciaron O'Reilly was born in Brisbane , Queensland, Australia, in 1960. He was educated at the Sisters of Mercy in Brisbane and later by the Christian Brothers at St. James College, Fortitude Valley . He

3402-444: The world, members of the Presentation Brothers will also have a presence within this community. Edmund Rice Development is a faith-based non-governmental organisation with charity status in Ireland . Based in Dublin , Edmund Rice Development was established in 2009, to formalise the fundraising efforts of the developing world projects for the Christian Brothers globally and received its charitable status in 2009. Funding raised by

3465-418: Was Governor of Texas ) were grounds for his removal from the case, in that his role was tainted with a "perception of bias". The third trial of the Pitstop Ploughshares trial started on 10 July 2006 and resulted in a unanimous not guilty verdict on both charges of criminal damage (to the aircraft and the door of the hangar) after twelve days of testimony and legal argument. Judge Miriam Reynolds had agreed with

3528-432: Was "grossly inadequate": most often Christian Brothers were moved to new locations after an allegation had been made. The Report found: "Often, the Christian Brother in question was allowed to remain in the position he held where the allegations arose, with continuing access to children," and "On many occasions, the Brother was moved to a new location after a complaint or allegation was made about his conduct. In some cases,

3591-521: Was "shocking and distressing." Children in care suffered sexual, physical and emotional abuse. Others named were "Brother William Gerard Ryan" and "Brother Christopher Urban McNamara". Michael Madigan, a representative for the Christian Brothers, said the congregation acknowledged with deepest regret that children had been abused. A pattern of physical and sexual abuse of more than 300 Mount Cashel Orphanage residents in St. John's , Newfoundland perpetrated by staff members, specifically members of

3654-424: Was a kind of intimidation basically; they were asking what my plans were for the next three months, in terms of politically organising against Australian involvement in the war. I don't see what business that has to do with them if their main thing is security." In a landmark case, O'Reilly went to trial at Ireland's Four Courts for the third time for disarming a US navy warplane at (civil) Shannon Airport in

3717-412: Was closed in 1974. The Congregation of the Christian Brothers published full-page advertisements in newspapers in Ireland in March 1998, apologizing to former pupils who had been ill-treated whilst in their care. This advertising campaign expressed "deep regret" on behalf of the Christian Brothers and listed telephone lines which former pupils could ring if they needed help. In 2003 the Congregation brought

3780-434: Was convicted of 72 counts involving 18 victims over three trials for sexual offences against boys in his care at four schools in Belfast, Newry and Armagh between 1964 and 1991. At his third sentencing, in 2024 aged 89, a police spokesman said "There is only one place for Dunleavy and that is behind bars. He will die in prison." The Christian Brothers declined to comment. In 2016 Brother John Bernard Farrell, retired priest of

3843-423: Was founded by the Christian Brothers from Ireland, UK on 8 September 1897. It is a high school in Kimberley, Northern Cape, South Africa founded by E.I.Rice. In 1900, the Brothers were invitated to establish houses in Rome , and in 1906 schools were established in New York City . In 1940 Iona College was founded in New York, as a Higher Education College, facilitating poorer high school graduates to progress to

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3906-505: Was reasonable, taking into consideration all the circumstances. After his acquittal, O'Reilly spent approximately three further years at London Catholic Worker 's Giuseppe Conlon House in Harringay , London, from shortly after its opening in 2010. He lives in his native Australia. According to Christoyannopoulos, he is noted both for "his reflections on Christian anarchism , and partly for his example in putting these reflection[s] into practice". In later years he has been associated with

3969-461: Was reasonable, taking into consideration all the circumstances. Over 100 international and numerous Irish anti-war activists converged in Dublin for all three trials. Public meetings took place around the trials, with well-known speakers such as Denis Halliday and Kathy Kelly . Ciaron O%27Reilly Ciaron O'Reilly (born 1960) is an Australian social justice and anti-war campaigner, peace protester, and Catholic Worker , having, as

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