Catholics :The Catholics Church priests and the sexual abuse. Comparison statistics please?
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LittleFlower378
Guest
I would also like to see the statistics that show that some priests are falsely accused. Some people may be out for the cashola.
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Delphinus
Guest
This site links to a 2004 study that looked at abuse statistics in schools:
www.lifesitenews.com
You can download that study here: : www2.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/misconductreview/report.pdf
Truth is, sexual abuse from priests SHOULD be absolutely 0. It’s deplorable that it is not. However, it is a far cry LESS than teachers in schools. Priests are statistically safer than children’s own parents, family, family friends, even strangers on the street (children are far more likely to be abused by someone they know). I learned this in my studies to BECOME a teacher (I teach middle school). It’s so widely ignored, though, because it doesn’t fit the modern narrative which means that people are watching the priests and not the far more likely place abuse is to occur. This just tells me that people don’t ACTUALLY care about stopping sex abuse, just taking down those “horribly unnatural celibate guys”.
Forgotten Study: Abuse in School 100 Times Worse than by Priests - LifeSite
by LifeSiteNews.com
www.lifesitenews.com
You can download that study here: : www2.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/misconductreview/report.pdf
Truth is, sexual abuse from priests SHOULD be absolutely 0. It’s deplorable that it is not. However, it is a far cry LESS than teachers in schools. Priests are statistically safer than children’s own parents, family, family friends, even strangers on the street (children are far more likely to be abused by someone they know). I learned this in my studies to BECOME a teacher (I teach middle school). It’s so widely ignored, though, because it doesn’t fit the modern narrative which means that people are watching the priests and not the far more likely place abuse is to occur. This just tells me that people don’t ACTUALLY care about stopping sex abuse, just taking down those “horribly unnatural celibate guys”.
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Wesrock
Guest
I’m Catholic. It is beyond frustrating when people ignorantly accuse the RCC or priests of being de facto pedofiles, as if being a priest or Catholic just makes you one, as if it’s morally acceptable by the Church.
But let’s not lose sight of the grave evil that was done, and the cover ups (even accounting for additional context of psychology of the times or what have you). There was gross mishandling and lack of recognition of the issue. The actions, even if not malicious, allowed predators to get new victims.
But let’s not lose sight of the grave evil that was done, and the cover ups (even accounting for additional context of psychology of the times or what have you). There was gross mishandling and lack of recognition of the issue. The actions, even if not malicious, allowed predators to get new victims.
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Alex337
Guest
“Too many”. It doesn’t matter if it’s less than protestants, or less than teachers, it’s too many.
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OsculeturMeOsculo
Guest
It does reveal quite a double standard.
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Delphinus
Guest
Very much so. What truly concerns me is that it’s got people watching the wrong circumstances. It’s a red herring which means the issue is NOT being addressed, things are not getting better, and children are being abused. It HAS to stop and wasting energy going after the statistically unlikely groups detracts from the elephant in the room and the problem remains unaddressed. It’s very infuriating for me.
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OsculeturMeOsculo
Guest
What’s also annoying is that people try to make it seem like the religious are more culpable because of their beliefs and let all the other groups get away with it. The media isn’t very helpful.
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po18guy
Well-known member
Just Google “sex scandal” and you will see that it affects the entire spectrum, from evangelical to mainline Protestant, to Orthodox and reform Judaism, and all other religions and non-religions. As to studies, there may be some related links on your Google hits.
Otherwise, call or email your archdiocese.
Otherwise, call or email your archdiocese.
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Roseeurekacross
Guest
You will find some of that breakdown for Australia, for institutional abuse, in the findings of the Australian Royal Commission into Historic institutional Child Abuse
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Tybourne
Guest
While I agree that even one is too many, I do think that comparison statistics are important. For example, as Catholics we believe that our priests, like the Orthodox, receive a sacramental grace that Protestant ministers do not. Therefore, since that grace is efficacious, without overcoming freewill, there should be lower rates of sexual offending among Catholic and Orthodox priests. If there are no such differences, or if priests are statistically more likely to offend, it begs questions about how men are formed in living out that sacramental grace. That situation would not negate our theology of holy orders, but would have spiritual and pastoral implications.
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jericho777
Guest
The question is what’s being done to make sure it doesn’t happen again. What assurance do parents have their children are going to be safe? There is no question these scandals have had an effect on church membership. In my area the number of catholic churches has gone way down.
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stpurl
Guest
The problem is that in many cases the Church is being used as a scapegoat over pretty much two things: Celibacy, and male priests.
There are sadly a lot of ignorant people out there who would rather believe pedophilia exists, “Because priests can’t have WIMMIN”, and therefore, they believe that they, or their ‘group’ is somehow shielded from pedophiles because THEY have married clergy. a subset of this is: Women are not pedophiles (they think). Therefore because their group has women clergy, they believe their group is shielded from pedophiles.
So the more the media trots out ‘the Catholic Church scandal’, even if they don’t mention celibacy or the ‘all male priesthood’ (and most media outlets do, frequently and loudly), many people are conditioned to immediately associate "pedophiles’ with 'all–male priests deprived of women, and to blame that, and that alone, on the existence of pedophilia.
There is a lot of covering up of pedophilia in almost every other church and/or group, not to mention that the most likely pedophiles are married men, who abuse either their own children/stepchildren, or ‘use’ the children as pawns to make friends with other children, and then abuse those children. But people don’t want to hear that, because then they’d have to worry about just about ‘anybody’ instead of those crazy old Catholic priests who don’t have women. And they’d have to start wondering if, since ‘celibacy’ doesn’t lead to pedophilia, and if women and/or married men are just as likely as a single male to be a pedophile, if not more so with a married man, then why should there be huge objections and complaints about celibacy and all-male priesthood? and then they might start wondering why the little old Catholic Church in the U.S. (considering there are far more Protestant groups, not to mention atheists and ‘nones’ out there) is getting so much negative attention over something that isn’t even wrong or dangerous. And then they might start to wonder what is so ‘important’ about the Church that lies and misinformation are directed at it, and not at any other Christian group. . .
There are sadly a lot of ignorant people out there who would rather believe pedophilia exists, “Because priests can’t have WIMMIN”, and therefore, they believe that they, or their ‘group’ is somehow shielded from pedophiles because THEY have married clergy. a subset of this is: Women are not pedophiles (they think). Therefore because their group has women clergy, they believe their group is shielded from pedophiles.
So the more the media trots out ‘the Catholic Church scandal’, even if they don’t mention celibacy or the ‘all male priesthood’ (and most media outlets do, frequently and loudly), many people are conditioned to immediately associate "pedophiles’ with 'all–male priests deprived of women, and to blame that, and that alone, on the existence of pedophilia.
There is a lot of covering up of pedophilia in almost every other church and/or group, not to mention that the most likely pedophiles are married men, who abuse either their own children/stepchildren, or ‘use’ the children as pawns to make friends with other children, and then abuse those children. But people don’t want to hear that, because then they’d have to worry about just about ‘anybody’ instead of those crazy old Catholic priests who don’t have women. And they’d have to start wondering if, since ‘celibacy’ doesn’t lead to pedophilia, and if women and/or married men are just as likely as a single male to be a pedophile, if not more so with a married man, then why should there be huge objections and complaints about celibacy and all-male priesthood? and then they might start wondering why the little old Catholic Church in the U.S. (considering there are far more Protestant groups, not to mention atheists and ‘nones’ out there) is getting so much negative attention over something that isn’t even wrong or dangerous. And then they might start to wonder what is so ‘important’ about the Church that lies and misinformation are directed at it, and not at any other Christian group. . .
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MaryClare
Guest
You have to take this with a grain of salt. There are real abuse victims, but there are also real liars only out for the attention or the money. I don’t know how you would be able to tell which is which and get proper statistics. We should pray for abuse victims, priests, and those who are accused falsely as well as those who have done what they were accused of. That is far more helpful than statistics anyway.
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fredystairs
Guest
Yes, Cardinal Bernardin of Cincinnati (Chicago?) was accused of sexual misconduct but his accuser later recanted. I take all preliminary reports with a grain of salt until they have been investigated.
I’m not saying that abuse didn’t happen, I just like to wait until the investigation is finished.
I’m not saying that abuse didn’t happen, I just like to wait until the investigation is finished.
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Delphinus
Guest
Funny enough, it was my observation of this as a protestant that led me even closer to Catholicism. I was VERY against the celibacy of the priesthood - it made me SO uncomfortable. Then I started to ask myself why. I realized it was because it was proof of the supernatural. Celibacy, especially in our culture, is a BIG DEAL. We are a sexualized culture where literally everything revolves around sex. Advertisements for SODA use sex as a marketing tool. You can’t even walk through a shopping mall without seeing advertisements for women in lingerie, out there for even children to see. Young girls see that this is what society says they have to look like, and young boys see that this is what society says is attractive. There is NOTHING more counter-cultural in our society than a celibate man. It screams of the holiness of the religious (men and women!) and the power of God to transform lives so even the most base of desires is counted as loss. Of course celibacy is under attack! 
Edit to add: As to the accusation of many that its “Unnatural” you’re darn right it is!! It’s SUPERNATURAL.
Edit to add: As to the accusation of many that its “Unnatural” you’re darn right it is!! It’s SUPERNATURAL.
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