What is covering up and what is following the advice of medical professionals. I forget what thread it was on, but someone linked an article which explained that for years the medical community thought pedophiles could be cured and that one way to help reintegrate these “cured” individuals back into the community was to move them to a new community and not mention his past. I hope someone remembers the article or thread I’m talking about and can link it for us, I think it was from Europe or about Europe.
Yes… I’ve read in a book that this was normal practice and belief decades ago.
I honestly believe there were greater complexities to this issue. For one thing contemporary people (maybe helped by 24 hour news channels, reality TV, talk shows like Jerry Springer) desire anyone accused of anything to be paraded before the public.
People in general–contrary to what they say–are very curious and interested in others sexual lives especially as conversation for gossip. People also suspect sex has far more moral and psychological consequences than they like to publicly admit.
One issue a Bishop would have to confront–ethically–is how much light do you bring to a child that has been sexually abused but does not wish it to go public or for his self to become the topic of popular conversation in school and/or community. There is also the privacy issue of the accused whether innocent or guilty.
Take a woman that aborts her child or a woman that spent decades addicted to drugs and in the process lost custody of 3 children (healthy kids) and later gave birth to a crack baby. Do you take other women, at any point, and parade their faces and personal information before the public at large that can never get enough of public spectacles, public lynchings, or simply want to know as much dirt on others as they can?
Combine that with the past notions that with successful completion of therapy a person that has a pedophilia problem (or not pedophilia but is attracted to older teenagers) can arrest his active pedophilia problem.
The there was the time period in which it was believed institutions that helped bring stability and benefit to society, should not expose all dirty laundry before the public, lest the public at large lose faith and further moral decay occurs. It used to be believed that individuals needed institutions, that institutions helped tie up society and communities into something stronger, gave guidance and helped produce good character in people. Institutions like baseball or football programs. Institutions like the Church.
I do think less benevolent concerns influenced one, many, or possibly all Bishops choices to shuffle priests and negotiate legal contracts purchasing the victims and or accusers silence.
The Bishop also has the traditional role of
Father and
Brother of the priests under their charge. How we understand the roll of father may or may not be consistent with our conceptions of God The Father as a father of us and other humans.
Perhaps I should interject here that for me personally the U.S. Prison system, its existence and purpose to punish, convinced me of the existence of hell. For how can the just among humans justly punish pedophiles or robbers or others and God does not? How can God be less just than them? Therefore, the just atheist that publicly states he hopes the pedophile priest is raped repeatedly in prison has no leg to stand on when attempting to convince me no just God would create a hell when in fact the just on earth create hell for others that violate their laws and become jolly and drunken with joy over it.
