Chapter 8 — Letterfrack

Sexual abuse in Letterfrack

The Congregation pointed out in its Submission that there were no contemporaneous complaints against this Brother while he was in Letterfrack. However, he and another Brother were criticised in a Visitation Report in 1945 for spending ‘most of their time down about the Boys’ Dormitories, in their rooms and away from the House’ His letter suggested that this man had a strong attraction towards boys from before his profession as a Brother and it may be suspected that he had sexual relations with boys during his time in Letterfrack. The Brother said in his letter that he was on the point of not taking final vows, but a lack of courage prevented him from refusing, indicating that the problem he had with the vow of chastity was of long standing.

This Brother continued to teach in national schools for boys in Dublin until the mid-1980s. He left the employ of the Christian Brothers in the same month as he received his dispensation and took up a teaching position in a boys’ school in another county. He continued teaching in boys’ schools for the rest of his career but not in any Christian Brothers’ schools, although he had declared that it was his intention to take up another occupation instead of teaching because ‘I am scared of having to deal with innocent boys and be the cause of their committing sin’.

Br Leandre should not have been in a position to continue his teaching career after his dispensation. He openly acknowledged to the Congregation that he was a danger to boys, and the Department of Education should have been alerted to this danger by the Provincialate. No record of any such warning appeared in the Christian Brothers or the Department of Education files. He was appointed to a teaching post in 1954. The question arises whether a reference was given by the Christian Brothers or no reference was sought by the new school when this appointment was made. In either case, safety of children was disregarded and the Brother’s position was protected.

Br Destan served in Letterfrack for one year in the 1940s. He was then transferred to three different day schools in four years and stayed in his final school for four years. He was dispensed from his vows in the late 1950s.

Although the correspondence on file referred to the existence of other letters, the relevant available information was contained in a letter from one of the management team in St Helen’s Province to the Superior General. The writer enclosed two letters (which have not survived) from the Brother seeking a dispensation. The senior Brother who passed on the request told the Superior General: He seeks a dispensation from his vows and for the present I am not sure whether we should recommend it or not. He is by no means quite normal and as you will see from the correspondence had been in trouble with boys and got a canonical warning. He now seeks a dispensation for conscientious reasons but does not say what these reasons are. It is quite possible that he is in trouble again but I do not know.

The fact that this Brother was moved around so much and spent such short periods in the different schools, gives rise to suspicion. As noted in the above letter, he had a history of ‘trouble with boys’ and had received a Canonical Warning. On the occasion of a transfer to a school in County Wicklow, the Provincial warned the Superior ‘in strictest confidence’ to exercise vigilance, so that ‘with this vigilance perhaps the danger is more remote’.

This was one of the few examples where the Christian Brothers acknowledged in writing that a Brother who interfered with boys was dangerous and required vigilance. It is difficult to reconcile this awareness with cases that were documented in their own records. Men who were known to abuse boys were frequently sent to industrial schools where the opportunities for offending were greatly increased and the possibility of detection much reduced.

Br Avenall served in Letterfrack in the late 1940s. His period in Letterfrack seems to have been in the interim between the first and second years of his teacher training. He served in a number of institutions, most notably in a day school from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s. In or about 1974, a complaint was made that he had been involved in improper conduct with a boy. When he was informed about this by the Provincial, he denied that there was any truth in the accusation. Some years previously, there had been a similar complaint and the matter was investigated by a previous Provincial. On that occasion also, the Brother denied that there was any truth in the allegation. Some time after the second of the above complaints, a Visitation took place in the day school where he was teaching, during which the Brother made a confession to the Visitor who described what happened in an appendix to his report: During his interview with the Visitor, Brother introduced this matter on his own initiative. He was very upset because he had not been candid with the Provincial, when the latter informed him of the complaint. He was too shocked to admit his problem, and requested the Visitor to let the Provincial know the real position. Brother said that this problem had a very long history. Some years ago there was a similar complaint made by a parent, and he was interviewed by the previous Provincial. On that occasion also he denied there was any truth in the accusation made against him. He now realised that he could [not] continue in his present state, and he asked the visitor for advice and help. He was anxious to have whatever medical and spiritual aid there was available. He would be grateful if the Provincial would arrange an interview with a suitable doctor and priest psychologist ... Though Brother had failed to face up to his problem for many years, he was at last prepared to do so now. He was concerned about the harm he has done to the real mission of the Brothers in the area, to the boys, to the Community; he was particularly concerned about the superior who would be so hurt if he knew Brother’s real position.

There were no complaints from witnesses about sexual abuse by this Brother during his time in Letterfrack, but again there must be grave suspicion in view of the information given to the Visitor years later and particularly the Brother’s failure ‘to face up to his problem for many years’.

In 1954 the Superior discovered that one of his Brothers had been sexually abusing children in the School. The complaint from one boy was that the Brother was ‘fiddling with him in his private parts’ and he described a number of incidents. A second boy gave somewhat similar information about the abuse carried out on him.

The matter was referred to the Provincial who interviewed the offender, who admitted to ‘immoral dealings’ with boys over a period of three months. Br Jean43 was removed from Letterfrack. The Provincial reported that it appeared that the Brother had been initiated into this type of activity whilst he was a student in the Christian Brothers’ Novitiate. The Superior of the College had at that time carried out an inquiry into homosexual activity there that resulted in a number of the boys being sent away. This offending Brother was one of a number who were allowed to remain and who went on to become Brothers.

This Brother was sent to Letterfrack in the knowledge that he had a history of sexual activity. The Superior in Letterfrack should have been notified of relevant history once it was decided to assign the Brother, but there is no evidence that this was done.

The Congregation commented in its Opening Statement that the way this matter was dealt with ‘demonstrated how quickly the authorities acted when a complaint was brought to their attention’.

The Superior did not reveal to the other Brothers the reason for Br Jean’s sudden departure. Br Sorel who served in Letterfrack at the time was angry: At the end of the year we were told that he was fired home, we were only told then by the Manager that he had been abusing two boys ... who used to go to the sacristy every night to prepare for the Mass for the next day for the Priest. I didn’t know at the time, none of us knew at the time what had been going on between himself and the two boys, ... the then Manager had said it was his duty to keep it secret and confidential. I was surprised last week when I heard somebody saying that everybody knew it, they didn’t. The boys didn’t know it because I would have found out easily from a number of the lads if that had happened.

While this witness believed that nobody knew the reason the Brother left, the evidence of former residents was that boys did know about Br Jean’s activities. One recalled hearing that Br Jean would take boys up to his room at night to give them extra lessons: Now, you hear rumours, but we knew that Br Jean left Letterfrack because he was abusing boys. We knew that. I knew some boys in particular who – they didn’t tell us, you just knew. How do I know? Okay, in the School we talked amongst ourselves, “why is he gone, why was he taking such a boy to his room at night pretending to be giving extra school lessons?” Now this is where I think it came from. It was fairly common knowledge amongst the boys that Br Jean was dismissed from the School because he was sexually abusing boys.