Linden MacIntyre: story teller extraordinaire

Perhaps one of the best pieces of reporting I’ve seen about the sexual abuse scandals in the roman catholic church in Antigonish, NS was broadcast tonight on CBC’s the fifth estate. Written by Giller book prize winner (The Bishop’s Man) Linden MacIntyre, the piece was balanced and broad in its coverage of this horrific story where children were abused by priests and the former bishop of the diocese, Newfoundlander Raymond Lahey, was charged with possessing child pornography.

MacIntyre and producer Neil Docherty give a voice to many people in the catholic diocese who expressed dismay that they were being forced to pay for the sins of a few priests and the culpability of the bishops of the day. Many asked the important question of why the vatican and the pope, long heralded as the centre of the catholic church were not required to contribute to the payment of eighteen and a half million dollars (a large portion of that going to lawyers).

If there was a disappointment in the piece, it was the interview with current Antigonish bishop Brian Dunn who managed to skate around every question that he was asked. Dunn is a former professor of church law at the catholic seminary in London, Ontario. Unfortunately, it seems his response is about all that we can expect from church hierarchy officials.