Indian Catholic priest who claims parents’ sins cause autismSubmissionin c… 8 - Attachmenthttps ://www.8 abc.net. au/new s DO D -A7 - ft/catholic-priest-who“c…
Appendix 8 MNEWS
lndian Catftolic priest who elaims parents’sins cause autism in ehildren cancels Australia tour
By Ben Knight
Posted Thu l8JuL 2OI9 at s:O8am
% Father Dominic Vatanmanat ctaims to have cured autism. (Facebook: Father Dominic
VaLcnmanal)
An lndian Catholic priest who claims to have ’cured’autism through prayer and compared autistic chitdren to’animatso, has cancetLed a planned series of religious retreats in Ar“lstralia
Father Dominic Valanmanatwas recently forced to Ke,!rpoints: cancel simiLar events in lreLand and Canada, after a Father Dominic Valanmanalwas due to video clip appeared online showing him preaching that autism in children was caused by the vice of their hotd a sold-out retreat on Phitlip lsLand parents and another in Canberra ’Adultery, masturbation, homosexuality, porn -if you The lndian Cathotic community in
are addicted to these, I say to you in the name of God ... Australia haiLs [argetyfrom the lndian
when you get married and have chitdren, there is a state of KeraLa, where Father
high possibitity of bearing these type of chitdren," he Vatanmanatis based said in the video-
A campaign to stop his visitwas ’They Lead an animal-Like [ife. They copuLate like backed by Autism support groups
I of3 19-Nov-20, 12:38 PM
Indian Catholic priest who claims parents’ sins cause autismSubmissionin c… 8 - Attachmenthttps://www.abc.net.au/news/208 I 9-07- 1 8/catholic-priest-who-c..,
animals. They bear children tike animals- Therefore those children also, witl be tike animats.“
soLd out a five- Father ValanmanaL- who cLaims to have “cured” two children in lreLand of autism - had day retreat cn Phitip lsland fn September, in which he charged around $4O0 per person to attend.
He also had another event scheduled in Canberra.
But yesterday the tour was cancetled.
Binoy Zacharias has an autistic son and ted the campaign to stop Father Valanmanat’s
Australia tour. (ABC News: Danielle Bonica)
A member of Melbourne’s lndian Catholic community, and the father of an autistic teenager; Binoy
.he Zacharias said should never have been invited in the first place'.
Mr Zacharias led the carnpaign against the priest’s visil
’A Lot of people urge me to take my son along to his retreats so that he can be treated,“ he said.
“lt makes me very sad. When he says he has removed autism as an evil spirit from famities, people take it seriously.”
Australia’s lndian Catholic community haiLs largety from the south lndian state of KeraLa, where Father VaLanmanat is based, and has historically incLuded a large number of heatth professiona[s.
That’s what makes the acceptance of his views on autisrn so upsetting,’said Linton Thomas, who is a member of the community in Bendigo and also a socialworken
’lt’s so sad that they are educated people who are taken in by this.
2 af3 l9-Nov-20, 12:39 PM
Indian Catholic priest who claims parents’ sins cause autismSubmissionin c… 8 - Attachmenthttps ://www.abc.net.arlnew8 s/20 19 -07 - I 8/catholic-priest-who-c…
’And they are the people who will be taking their chitdren along to these retreats hoping for a miracle cure.“
Linton Thomas said peopte who paid for the retreats were hoping for a miracle eure. (ABC
Central Victoria: Beth Gibson)
Last month, the Bishop of Calgary cancelled Father ValanmanalJs permission to Lead a retreat in Canada after community mernbers raised concerns, before apologising and promising a review of the diocese’s internal processes.
The campaign against the priest’s visit to Australia drew support from the Rationalist Society and the autism advocacy organisation Amaze, both of which wrote to the Archbishop of Me[bourne, Peter Comensoli, to raise concerns.
Amaze chief executive Fiona Sharkie told the ABC she was pleased the visit has been cance[led, calling the priesfs views’stigmatising, highly offensive and entirely inaccurate’. ’Our principal concern is the to[ on autistic people, their families and carers, his claims witl create if he is provided a pubLic pLatform,“ Ms Sharkie said. The Leader of the Australian Syre.Malabar church - a branch of the Catholic church - B’ishop Bosco Puthur, told the ABC Father Valanmanals views were’not the position of the Cathotic church“.
“That is my position atso,” Bishop Puthur said.
3 of 3 l9-Nov-20, 12:39 PM