Clerical sexual abuse scandals

Brennan is regarded by many as having brought stability to the diocese after the publication of the Ferns Report, in which 100 cases of clerical sexual abuse which occurred during the episcopacies of his predecessors, Brendan Comiskey and Donal Herlihy, were disclosed.^[11]

In a meeting held on 1 March 2010, he told parishioners that the diocese had had to pay more than €8 million to settle 48 civil actions, while a further thirteen actions were pending.^[12]

Brennan also said that a request for financial help from parishioners was not about sharing blame, but about "asking for help to fulfil a God-given responsibility", adding that victims of clerical sexual abuse were not the cause of the diocese's problems, but rather "the actions of individual perpetrators, along with mismanagement, poor understanding and/or lack of resolve":^[12]

"The Diocese of Ferns has been on a road involving the settlement of claims for 15 years now. It has been very much a team effort – various administrations and personnel, local diocesan and national church funding. Up to 80 per cent of the road of justice has been travelled. As we look to complete this road, it will be necessary to invite the parishes to become part of the process financially."^[12]

While the diocese insisted that weekly collections would not contribute towards redress for victims, it was estimated that €60,000 a year would need to be raised from parishioners over a 20-year period, with the alternative being to sell diocesan assets and properties including the bishop's house in Wexford, the seminary at St Peter's College and agricultural land. The balance was eventually paid through diocesan savings, remortgaging the bishop's house and the raising of a €1.8 million loan, while €2.1 million was also spent on legal fees for abuse inquiries, and €836,000 towards the treatment of paedophile priests.^[12]

2010 Vatican summit

Brennan participated in a meeting with Irish bishops, Pope Benedict XVI and senior members of the Roman Curia from 15 to 16 February 2010 to discuss the publication of the Ryan and Murphy reports in 2009. In an interview on Morning Ireland on RTÉ Radio 1 on 17 February, he referred to the meeting as a "watershed moment" that would redefine the relationship between the Church and abuse victims, adding that a number of points regarding the mishandling of abuse cases by Church authorities were made by bishops "very honestly" in the presence of the Pope:^[13]

"The Holy Father has heard the many stories of Irish victims and I can also say they have been believed. To have the Holy Father there for a day and a half and the nine heads of the Vatican congregations shows how seriously the Church is taking the issue."^[13]

When asked why certain issues such as episcopal resignations and the findings of the Murphy Report were not addressed, Brennan pointed out that the meeting was primarily a briefing session to aid the Pope in his writing of a forthcoming pastoral letter to Catholics in Ireland, and that such issues were not on the agenda. He was responding to criticism from victims groups who expressed disappointment at the failure of the talks to address several issues relating to the Church's handling of clerical sexual abuse cases.^[13][14]

COVID-19 pandemic

In a pastoral letter to the people of the diocese in November 2020, Brennan questioned the imposition of a ban on all public worship in Ireland following the introduction of Level 3 restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, stating that that Ireland was the only country in Europe where such a ban had been imposed was "clearly sufficient reason to revisit the matter, to reassess its necessity and to re-examine its appropriateness, and to consider the positive benefits of its being lifted".^[15]