Enabling Evil

It is a well-known fact that the Christian Brothers perfected the use of sexual violence and rape against children as a means of control. Sexual violence and rape were the main strategy used by the Christian Brothers in running the Industrial Schools throughout Ireland. 
Later on, the Christian Brothers again used sexual violence and rape against children in the Irish State School System. Under the branding of the C.B.S Schools. The Christian Brothers for a very long time had a death grip on the school systems in Ireland. 

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.

In the late 20th and early 21st century many cases were exposed of emotional, physical and sexual rape of children in the Christian Brothers' care over several decades. Cases emerged in Ireland, Canada, the United States, Australia and Great Britain, Scotland, and Wales. 
The Christian Brothers leaders knew of allegations of sexual rape of children at all the Industrial Schools and Orphanages they ran in Ireland and failed to manage these Religious Institutions to prevent the systemic ill-treatment of children in their care for decades.

 The Ryan Report or The Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Rape) was established on 23 May 2000. The Ryan Report found that thousands of children in the care of the Christian Brothers were raped, the average age of the child was 9, who had been sexually raped by one or more Christian Brothers, in the Industrial Schools they ran in Ireland. Now we also know that thousands of Child Rape complaints had been made against the Christian Brothers in all the Irish State Schools the Christian Brothers ran throughout Ireland. 

We also know that In response to complaints of sexual violence and rape was "grossly inadequate": All the Christian Brothers who were involved in the rape of children were moved to new schools after an allegation of rape of a child was made against them. The Christian Brother would be relocated to another school, he would be free again in his new environment to continue his raping ways. 

All the Industrial Schools in Ireland received a lasting notoriety through revelation of physical and sexual rape of tens of thousands of boys by most of the Brothers running these Industrial Schools. This according to The Ryan Report. 

With clear evidence of sexual rape, murder and extreme physical punishments going back to the 1930s. According to the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, (The Ryan Report ) between the years 1940 to 1970;- Thousands of vulnerable children died in these Industrial Schools while in the care of the Christian Brothers. All the Industrial Schools in Ireland were closed in 1974. 

According to the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, (The Ryan Report ). This report found that sexual rape of thousands of boys in the Industrial Schools in Ireland run by the Brothers was very common. 

The Ryan Report says;- that most of the Christian Brothers credibly accused were moved from Industrial Schools to Industrial Schools, later the same Christian Brothers were moved into the C.B.S. Schools throughout Ireland. We now know that they, the moved Christian Brothers committed even more rape and sexual violence of vulnerable children in their care according to the Scoping Inquiry led by Senior Counsel Mary O’Toole. The report follows a series of abuse allegations from the 1960s and 1970s at schools run by religious congregations.  

Mary O'Toole (Scoping Inquiry) 2023/2024 writes that "In total, 820 allegations of rape 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 the Christian Brothers have been convicted of child sexual rape”, "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. 

In the Industrial Schools in Ireland of the 9,782 complaints of sexual rape and violence;-  96% were against the Christian Brothers and 4 % against other Clerics, namely Priests attached to the Industrial Schools in Ireland. Only 5 or 6 Christian Brothers were ever charged, 3 were convicted, the rest of the Christian Brothers died before they were charged, or were already dead at the time of the Ryan Report. Other Christian Brothers, credibly accused, were moved by the Superior of the Christian Brothers to safe Christian Brother’s houses, either in Ireland or overseas. 


The Ryan Report also says;- that the Superior Christian Brothers of the Industrial Schools in Ireland, knew that these same Christian Brothers, credibly accused, had committed sexual violence and rape within their own Industrial Schools, but still moved them to other Schools. Some of the Superior Christian Brothers of the Industrial Schools in Ireland, themselves were also accused of rape and violence in their schools.

The Ryan Report also says;- that the Christian Brothers operated in Gangs at the different Industrial Schools and Private Schools, throughout Ireland. 

If one reads “The Ryan Report” 2009 and the “Scoping Inquiry” 2023-2024 . One can see a direct line with same gang of Christian Brothers, their names keep popping up. 

The Scoping Inquiry into Historical Sexual Abuse in Day and Boarding. Schools Run by Religious Orders. The final Report Published in 2024 states;- 

2,395 rape allegations in 308 schools run by the Religious Orders, mainly The Christian Brothers. Over half of the 884 Clerics, named and credibly accused of rape are dead. Ever major Private Schools was involved;- 

185 allegations of rape and sexual violence took place at Spiritan-run schools in Blackrock, Co Dublin, the Eton of Ireland. At one time Archbishop Don Charles McQuaid was Dean and President of Blackrock College. 

Some 130 allegations of rape were disclosed at Willow Park Junior School against 24 alleged rapists, while 55 allegations of abuse were disclosed against 13 alleged Pedophile Clerics at its post-primary counterpart Blackrock College. 

Some 528 allegations of rape by Clerics at special needs schools across the Irish State were disclosed against 194 Separate Pedophile Clerics. 

A further 119 allegations of abuse at the Holy Family School, a special school in Renmore, Co Galway, also run by the Brothers of Charity, were received, detailing a further 49 alleged abusers.

Some 63 allegations of abuse against 44 alleged abusers at St Mary’s School for Deaf Girls in Cabra, Co Dublin were disclosed, while 144 allegations were disclosed against 36 alleged abusers across all Saint John of God Hospitaller Ministries schools.

Some 20 allegations of abuse against 20 separate alleged abusers at community schools were disclosed. Seven of those were within schools run by the Congregation of Sisters of Mercy.

Among other schools which saw a high number of cases was Terenure College, Co Dublin, run by the Carmelite Fathers. Some 89 allegations were disclosed against 11 alleged abusers working there within both primary and secondary level.

At the Jesuit-run Belvedere College, Dublin, 64 allegations were disclosed. Some 11 alleged abusers were working within the school, according to the report.

A further 60 allegations of rape against 18 Pedophile Clerics at the Spiritan-run Rockwell College in Cashel, Co Tipperary were disclosed.

List of Schools and Colleges Run by the Clerics of the Catholic Church on the link below. 

https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/education/2024/09/03/abuse-report-full-list-of-308-schools-and-case-numbers-detailed/

Significant acts of emotional, sexual and physical rape of the boys in the Industrial Schools in Ireland were, however, perpetrated by the Christian Brothers and other Religious Groups, running the Industrial Schools in Ireland. The acts preformed daily, included humiliating nudity, naked whippings, rape and degrading violence. Other acts of horror were sexualised humiliation, sexual exchange, forceful rape and other sexually related brutality. These were the harsh realities of life in all Industrial Schools in Ireland. 


The Religious Orders, like the Christian Brothers, viewed us boys as the lowest of the low. To be raped and abused at will, there was nobody to stop them, we were powerless. The Catholic Church ideology demonising our mothers and their offsprings, we were the spawn of the devil according to them. We were undesirable children, born out of wedlock according to the Catholic Church. 


Some boys in the Industrial Schools would share their bodies to obtain extra food or offer their bodies instead of a beating. We boys the Industrial Schools had no understanding of pride, or integrity. The depths to which some boys had to sink to survive are not easily comprehended. The Industrial Schools of Ireland were hellholes, you had to survive or die. Years later according to the Ryan Report many boys were unwilling to report such experiences, in fact many of the boys, sadly took their dehumanisation, to their graves. Sadly, most of the boys would never talk about their rapes or sexual violence, at the hands of the Christian Brothers. 


Catholic Church twisted ideology of hate led to systematically dehumanised these Children in these Religious run Institutions, physically, socially, psychologically and sexually. Many testimonies later a few of the Boys started to speak out, especially after the Ryan Report came out, at how the Christian Brothers were able to implement the most vicious and cruel acts on them as children, unspeakable cruel acts that were perpetrated during their time in the Industrial Schools of Ireland. 


The death of the soul was aimed at. It was to be accomplished by terror and privation, but first by relentless assault on the boy’s sense of purity and worth. Excremental attack, the physical inducement of disgust and self-loathing, was a principal weapon used by the Christian Brothers as was physical rape. Many boys wept from the humiliation, as did I, our collective rape as vulnerable children in these Industrial Schools in Ireland, were simply routine. We children viewed our rapes as normal, just routine. 


I, myself, while stripped naked had already seen some of the Boys in class completely naked, waiting in line for a beating from an evil smirking, and lascivious Christian Brother. We boys stood motionless with our demon friend, fear, some boys cried quietly, with everything exposed, some boys with their faces diverted, some boys praying, while the Brother sexually played with and proceed to raped the boy. Sexual violence, in addition to social and physical abuse, was clearly part of the process of dehumanising and humiliating the boys. It ready was about control and the power that the Christian Brother held over the boys. 


There is no doubt that survivor testimonies, through the Ryan Report and other Reports no matter how few, did confirm that rape and sexual violence against boys did occur. Many Christian Brothers sexually abused multiple boys in these Industrial Schools, as reported by The Ryan Report. Many of the same Christian Brothers who raped the boys, were removed from one Industrial School to another Industrial School and then on to the Irish State Schools. There was nothing to stop them, they were immune. Their Religion as serving Clerics would always protects them, wearing a white collar was a badge of both honour and a shield of total immunity. 


The sexual and personal aftereffects of child rape lasted for decades, if not for life, among most survivors. Sexual brutality found its place in the culture of cruelty that emerged under Clerical rule, and that was harnessed to achieve the Christian Brothers goal of full control of the boys. Sexual brutality, as in beatings and rape were a normal day activity for some of the boys. 


The Christian Brothers sexual brutality was evident in every Institution that they ran, be it the Industrial Schools or the Irish State Schools. Most Christian Brothers were not immune from accusations of sexual brutality, rape or even murder. 


Humiliation, nudity and voyeurism were common in every Industrial School in Ireland. A standard punishment in the Industrial Schools was a black leather strap on the naked buttocks, with the boy bent over a chair. The count of the lashes were up to the Brother, a half dozen or a dozen, depending on the Christian Brother and how he felt on the given day. Blows and kicks to genital organs by the Christian Brother were very common. A few of the Christian Brothers were known among the Boys as particular sadistic and cruel, in many cases the cruelty was often sexually directed. 


One such Brother I knew was Brother Manning. Brother Manning was a fiery redhead, and he loved to gather the boys in his class around him as he stripped naked a boy he picked on. Brother Manning would put the boy’s head between his knees and raise the boys bottom almost to his chest, and with his black leather strap he would beat the screaming boy’s bum like a raised drum. Brother Manning took great pleasure in this form of punishment, at each stroke on the screaming boy’s bottom, Brother Manning’s eyes would glow with delight and after a few strokes his whole face was bright red with excitement. Some weeks Brother Manning would do this form of punishment to 3 or 4 boys, me included, one after the other, we were all terrified of him. 


Most Christian Brothers actions, while extreme and far more extensive, are not, unfortunately, exceptional. There is no doubt that these acts of despicable cruelties, were more common in the Industrial Schools of Ireland, as no one cared about what went on in these Industrial Schools in Ireland. 


We here in Ireland still have much to understand about the Christian Brothers or other Religious Orders ability to commit unspeakable crimes, against vulnerable Women and Children, particularly when driven by Religious inspired violence and sexual rape, infused with Religious superstitious fears, and their God given righteousness. I often ask myself where does the concept of evil come from, I have always known, evil comes from the Bible. I have over the years heard evil used when one talks about the Christian Brothers.


Nietzsche argues that the concept of evil should be abandoned because it does not describe a moral reality, but instead, is merely used to demonise enemies. Nietzsche also argues that the concept of evil arose from the negative emotions of envy, hatred, and resentment. I am sorry but I would say that the Christian Brothers are still the menace that embody evil.
The Christian Brothers made atrocities in their Industrial Schools and other Schools they ran or are still running more palatable. No, I would say, not all Christian Brothers were evil. I think many of the Christian Brothers did evil evil things. Far from being a case of “a few bad apples”, the complicity the Christian Brothers evil was extensive.


As was asked;- “Can one do evil without being evil? This was the puzzling question that the philosopher Hannah Arendt grappled with. I, myself and  without hesitation would apply the quote “the banality of evil” to the Christian Brothers. 


The Christian Brothers Instead, performed evil deeds with evil intentions. The absolute evil of totalitarianism of both the Catholic Church and the Christian Brothers are to be still found in all their Schools and other institutions they still run today.  We need to confront and never forget the evil of totalitarian criminality and the rape of countless vulnerable children in their care of both the Christian Brothers and the wider Catholic Church.