Royal Commission Report Part Five – Gloriavale Decides not to Respond

Opinion piece: Liz Gregory.

(Thoughts, opinions and views expressed here belong to Liz Gregory and may or may not represent the views of all leavers, current members or the Trust).

This week all faith-based institutions were supposed to meet the 2-month deadline requested by the Royal Commission to respond to the Royal Inquiry’s Findings into Abuse in State Care and Faith-based Institutions. 10 our the 14 groups missed the deadline, including the Government. You can read about it in the RNZ news article here.

Perhaps we can cut them some slack. The report was 2500 pages long, and each group needed to read the entire report and its many volumes, and find the parts that referred to their group, and then consider the recommendations.

It’s not small job. It took me two full days to read the report, and then pull out the pieces that related to Gloriavale, and I haven’t managed to complete and format the document to share around yet.

But there is a difference. Our group is not the group that was being investigated or criticized. These groups have had years knowing of their inclusion. The findings should not have come as a surprise to anyone. A current member of Gloriavale (who has seen Gloriavale’s failings) wrote to us saying,

“I’m wondering what there is to “think about” after all this time. They’ve had years to think this through.”

So lets’ say hats off to the groups who got their responses in on time, and made full acknowledgment of the harm they caused.

Also hats off to the groups who are working on their responses, and have let the public know that their responses are coming.

Hats off even to the Government, because let’s be honest, there was no way they could digest the whole report and respond within two months. There are hundred of recommendations. We know they have an apology date of 12 November set down. We know they have a working committee who says they are taking seriously the findings – even if we might not be happy with the pace, or how they ultimately implement them. I think the Government needs longer than two months to digest and respond.

So what about Gloriavale? Well I must admit to cringing and then feeling embarrassed by their response to RNZ today…

“Bottom line is we didn’t make a response,” Peter Righteous, a senior in the West Coast community, told RNZ. It’s our business as to why we respond to things or why we don’t. We are still going over the thing and thinking about all the ramifications and all that. But we decided not to respond to it and that’s that.”

Did you hear that? “And that’s that”. Did that tone deaf response that make you gasp? I always wonder if their CEO or their lawyers want to hide under a rock when they make trainwreck public comments like that.

A current member’s reaction was,

“Pretty arrogant.”

Why won’t they Respond?

Well, it’s all speculation, but one can make some pretty reasonable observations as to why they won’t be responding. You look at their track record, you listen to people who have left and still live in there, and then you think about what they have coming up, and it’s likely to be a combination of these ideas listed below:

1. Perhaps they don’t believe the extent of the allegations and fault finding. They might want to downplay, diminish and perhaps suggest only half of it is true. This wouldn’t be well received by the general public. Best they remain quiet.
2. The uncovering of widespread abuse is no surprise, but to admit it and acknowledge it places the blame back on the leadership and culture of Gloriavale. We can’t see them really wanting to accept that fully. To this day they haven’t done that. Why start now?
3. Every time they do respond they put themselves in the firing line for public criticism. Even though they live “separately from the world”, they enjoy the benefits of business relationships to keep their community ticking over.
4. A response may be used against them in upcoming legal cases. Best they say as little as possible. It does appear that every time they speak, they incriminate themselves a little bit more…
5. Given the large numbers of men (more than 20) who have gone, or who are going through the courts, Gloriavale may think that a response could inflame the situation for various members to get a fair trial.
6. It might be in the too hard basket. It’s a very critical report, and we all know the issues are complex. How do you write a response that everyone is happy with? Gloriavale is quite divided at present. The exposure and pressure over many years has broken the facade of unity, and there are actually people in there who know they need a “sea change”.
7. Who would write this response? Do the leaders have the right to write a response without consulting with their people? Do the current members even know much detail about the Royal Commission Report and has it been widely circulated and discussed in a public meeting? (They did find time to discuss the sin of drinking coffee in recent months…) Have they set up a Royal Commission Response Group, with community members who feel free and able to contribute?
8. Perhaps their lawyers advised them not to. Gloriavale seems to have huge difficulty making decisions (good decisions) and for whatever reason they make use of lawyers (paid for by the people’s “voluntary” contributions to the community) to help dig them out of their pickles. But this one is tricky. Perhaps they didn’t have the finances to pay the lawyers? Or perhaps they couldn’t agree. Their lawyers have to get out of bed every day and try to live with integrity… (I personally would be embarrassed to have Gloriavale as clients, but everyone is entitled to a defence).
9. Perhaps they don’t believe they need to respond, because God’s Government is higher than the recommendations of a Royal Commission.
10. Perhaps they just don’t know how to respond.
11. Perhaps they might not want to respond. Perhaps they think that if they say less, they can weather the storm. It will die away soon, so let’s not stoke the fire.
12. Perhaps they know if they respond, or don’t respond, there will be criticism either way. On this point they are wrong. If they responded in a fully humbled fashion, things would indeed change.
13. Perhaps they think this is just a bit of persecution, and not worthy of a response.
14. Perhaps they know that if they respond humbly, with full acceptance and acknowledgement that they weren’t being guided by God’s voice all these decades, that their world will come crashing down around their ears. And for many, I think you’ll find they can’t begin to entertain that thought.

And therein possibly lies the heart of the issue.

Dr Wade Mullen has studied hundreds of groups like Gloriavale and wrote a book called “Something’s Not Right”. In it he says,

“Here is the unfortunate truth: no amount of patience will produce change in an abusive community that isn’t willing to surrender its legitimacy and pursue the entire truth.”

“The victims deserve, and therefore bystanders ought to demand, immediate truth seeking and truth telling. If leadership is governed by truth and not by deception, then they will seek and speak the truth no matter the cost, and if that cost entails lawsuits, falling attendance, or even shuttering the doors of the institution, then it is worth the cost, because the establishment of truth will always matter more than our establishments.”

Current and Former Member Thoughts

One former member messaged us saying,

“Peter Righteous’ comments just show the arrogance of the their whole perspective. There is no repentance happening anytime soon…”

Quotes from current members (who can see Gloriavale’s failings):

“If you were truly repentant you would be down on your hands and knees grovelling. Nothing would be too hard for you to show your repentance. You would be prepared to do absolutely anything we ask of you without question and a happy heart.”

Final Thoughts

Some part of me is relieved that Gloriavale hasn’t come out with another “apology”. I think it’s best to not apologise than give an insincere or incomplete apology. I don’t think they have the capacity to give a complete apology because I do not see evidence that they have fully grappled with and grasped the depth of the issues, and their role in it all.

They are still spending vast amount of financial resources on lawyers to diminish liability and accountability. They are still trying to hide and downplay the role of the leadership in creating a culture that allowed abuse to flourish. They still want to hold onto their doctrines and community life, and don’t seem to have made the connection that everyone else has yet.

Or perhaps we are bring too harsh. Perhaps they are intending to respond – just not yet.

In the meantime, their “we will not respond” comment, should sound an alarm.

And that’s that.