Issues
One of the major issues of recent times has been the consolidation of the diocese by the closure of some historic parishes. St John the Baptist's West Hobart and Holy Trinity, North Hobart were sold, with the sale of the historic Holy Trinity church being particularly controversial and leading to protests (particularly as the church building, supposedly condemned as unsafe, was then used by the Greek Orthodox Church).
From 1997 to 1998, a public inquiry was held which unearthed a number of cases of clerical child abuse, involving nine priests, which had occurred from 25 to 30 years previously. As a result of these finding, the church provided compensation. More recently the diocese has focused on providing safe ministry, with the current bishop, John Harrower, saying that "the church is committed to stamping out child sexual abuse within its ranks." He has also lobbied the federal government about this issue.
Read more about this topic: Diocese Of Tasmania
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