Because of the initial evaluation, the Congregation for Bishops and the Congregation for Catholic Education do not envisage further apostolic visitations. The visitors meetings with various organizations and individuals, including the local bishops, provided “a sufficiently complete picture of the situation of the Irish Church” concerning the areas under investigation.
The relevant Vatican dicasteries, or departments, will give indications to the bishops for the “spiritual renewal” of the dioceses and seminaries. The Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life will provide similar recommendations for the religious institutes.
The congregation has analyzed responses to the visitation’s questionnaires sent to all institutes with religious houses in Ireland. Visits to some religious communities will follow.
The Vatican said that the visitation to the four metropolitan archdioceses of Ireland, the seminaries and the religious institutes was “very useful” because of the cooperation of everyone who took part.
“The Holy Father's sincere thanks goes to them, especially to the four Metropolitan Archbishops,” the Vatican said.
In April media reports speculated that the visitors would recommend the closure of the national seminary at Maynooth in county Kildare. The seminary authorities dismissed the reports as “without foundation.”
The four-man team heading the investigation into four of the key dioceses of Ireland consisted of Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, Archbishop Thomas Collins of Toronto, Archbishop Terence Prendergast, S.J., of Ottawa and Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor, the former Archbishop of Westminster, England.