A Catholic religious community in Melbourne, Australia says it will be forced to close after nearly two centuries as it moves to settle a large number of abuse claims brought against it. 

Christian Brothers Oceania Province said on June 22 it was proposing a plan to facilitate the “orderly distribution of our remaining property, funds and other assets” to victims of abuse by congregation members.

The organization said in a press release that “some members” of the congregation had caused “enormous harm through their criminal sexual abuse of children.” 

The group said it is facing a “pivotal moment” in which a “very difficult financial position” led it to propose the distribution scheme. Either through that scheme or through “liquidation,” the group said its Oceania province would “inevitably come to an end.” 

The congregation has multiple chapters on every continent except Antartica and has faced numerous sexual abuse allegations elsewhere. The Oceania province includes congregations in Australia, New Zealand, and Papa New Guinea. 

The organization said that over roughly the past 45 years it has already made payments to abuse victims “in excess of $480 million.” Yet in the past decade the number of claims against the organization has “accelerated,” leading the group to propose the distribution scheme. 

If the proposal does not receive court approval, the congregation said, then it will “have no option but to enter liquidation.” 

“In both cases,” the group said, the Oceania province will “cease to exist.” 

The organization’s press release noted that it is “financially and canonically distinct” from the “broader Catholic Church,” meaning it has “no ability to compel other Catholic institutions” to help with the financial payout. 

The province’s assets include approximately 36 properties throughout Australia with a total value of about $216 million, the group said. 

The proposed distribution scheme would also account for the future care of the remaining brothers in the province, the congregation said. A total of 176 brothers are still living throughout the province with an average age of 80 years. 

The interests of the abuse victims “remain our highest priority,” the congregation said. 

The congregation first established a presence in Australia 183 years ago, in 1843, the group said, and while it argued that there is “much to be proud of” in its work, its history of sex abuse is “shameful and painful.” 

“It is a truth we do not resile from, and it is this which has brought us to this point today,” the group said. 

The Congregation of Christian Brothers was founded in 1802 by Edmund Ignatius Rice in Waterford, Ireland. It was formally recognized by the Holy See in 1820.