Priests who abuse

[Disillusioned]

This is written by way of qualification so that too many people do not think that I am writing negative comments out of pure malice and disdain for the Church. I consider myself to have been a faithful Catholic, but events have overtaken the certitudes of earlier days.

I submitted thoughts which were totally accepted as testimony to the Nolan Committee when civil authorities in England decided that the problem of sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy was requiring attention.

I was fooled by the talk of a man who was already notorious as an unsuitable vocations director when I considered the priesthood on gaining my degree.He made it his business to sweet talk my parents who were not Catholics about me and said things about my child like faith that my mother believed…This man had come from the South China Sea, he cultivated an “I’m one of the boys” manner with an obsessive physicality that simply did not ring true when I agreed to some weekends.Who else would be on these weekends but a senior priest dying of cancer, but still totally full of himself and who as well as lacing his speech with swear words would invite the favourite boys to listen to tapes in his closed room.I’m not going to waste much more time with these two, they were the end of vocations in our area and one is dead.

That this disgraceful activity goes on among Roman priests who are supposed to be divinely charactered is something that made me shudder.Of course I hope my poor Mum realises how he was using her as much as me.

They must be forgotten as functioning clergy…they can’t really be cured…but I racked my brains and said in my notes to the Committee that not enough priests follow S Paul and put away childish things and that they excuse as serious a condition as paedophilia in terms of becoming like the little ones.

Now you really know the reason for my user name.Do people not feel sad that these men kept their work? If you are suspected now, the Church will do what it ought to…that’s progress as I see it.

 

[Lorik]

There will always be a Judas among us. I truly beleive that priests that abuse children were pediphiles before becoming priests. There is nothing about the pristhood that turns them into pediphiles. Pediphiles seek out positions of trust with children. When a pediphile is discovered in the community it is likely to be a teacher, minister, coach, scout leader, priest, or some other occupation or hobby that permits them access to children. It’s not likely going to be the plumber or stock trader. Pediphiles knowingly or not seek out these occupations that permits them to be wolves in sheeps clothing and because of this the church has been an attractive target for them. The church is a victim of them. We must protect her from further harm and further harm to our children. Satan attacks the church in the most disgusting ways possible. We must pray that as members of the church we will do better to protect the entire body of Christ. God bless and peace always.

 

[mjdonnelly]

Also, this occurs in every faith. To deny that is ignorance and cover-up. Newspapers will put information of this, not on the front page where the Catholic reports would go, but on page 10. The newspapers also don’t report this when it is committed by parents of the children. It isn’t sensational enough.

 

[STJOMO]

There are charlatans in every profession. I’m sorry to say that the priesthood is not immune.

I’m sorry for everything that has happened, but I’m glad it’s being exposed, so that we can wash away the charlatans and grow stronger for the experience.

There is nothing lower than a corrupt priest.

 

[Tyler_Smedley]

In fact the abuse rate among the Catholic Church is one of the lowest compared to other religions. But I do agree that when a priest makes a mistake it is worse than a normal person, because they are in a postion of trust. That said it also needs to be said that they are only human, and they make mistakes. There are always going to be the judas amoung us like someone else said earlier, but remember that not all who are acused are guilty. Pray for our priests they lead a lonley lifestyle and need our prayers very much.

 

[Ken]

Tyler Smedley:

In fact the abuse rate among the Catholic Church is one of the lowest compared to other religions. But I do agree that when a priest makes a mistake it is worse than a normal person, because they are in a postion of trust. That said it also needs to be said that they are only human, and they make mistakes. There are always going to be the judas amoung us like someone else said earlier, but remember that not all who are acused are guilty. Pray for our priests they lead a lonley lifestyle and need our prayers very much.

The February report from the committee set up by the bishops said that statistics of abuse in various professions are extremely unreliable. How would anyone know how Catholics stack up against other religions? What are the statistics for the other religions?

 

[Tyler_Smedley]

Don’t really know, I read it in an article somewhere, I think in a paper over christmas break…But I would say that percentage wise we have the lowest abuse rate, our Church is HUGE!!

 

[rfk]

Disillusioned:

I submitted thoughts which were totally accepted as testimony to the Nolan Committee

I am sorry that you underwent such an experience. There is no acceptable reason for a priest to behave that way.

Disillusioned:

They must be forgotten as functioning clergy…

It is my understanding that, at least in the US, the Bishops have (finally) removed all such priests.

Lorik:

I truly beleive that priests that abuse children were pediphiles before becoming priests.

I’d like to note that the press, who loves to lambaste the Catholic Church as well as promote the homosexual agenda, has done a great job of painting this as “the pedophile priest” problem.

It is predominantly a homosexual problem.

“Pedophilia” is a psychiatric term meaning sexual interest in children below the age of puberty. But roughly 80% of all cases were post-puberty (age 11-17), and 80% of all victims were boys.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me as somehow justifying or supporting that behavior, because I don’t. But I do see a huge difference between a priest having sex with a 16 year-old boy versus any 7 year-old. I remember being 16 and sexually active, albeit with girls instead of priests. Although I was not able to have “legal consent”, I certainly was consenting to willing participation.

Although a priest having sex with either a 7 year-old or a 16 year-old is a mortal sin in both cases, and illegal in both cases, I still see a genuine distinction between the two cases. Actually, if one was to swallow the lies told by NAMBLA (North American Man-Boy Love Association), they would have us believe that “intergenerational” homosexual sex should be accepted and normal. They actually have the gall to claim they are working for the “liberation of persons of all ages from sexual prejudice and oppression”. :bigyikes:
bway.net/nambla.org/welcome.htm

Bottom line, there is a definite homosexual agenda to normalize relations between older men and teen age boys, and the whole priest problem was a symptom of that. And you won’t read that in the New York Times or the Washington Post!

 

[Scanner]

Wow. I can’t beleive it. Being open minded is one thing, but your mind can open up so much that your brains fall out.Thanks for the link. I can’t beleive there is such an organization.

 

[AmandaPS]

This probably won’t surprise you, Scanner, but NAMBLA is supported/defended by the ACLU.

 

[Ken]

Tyler Smedley:

Don’t really know, I read it in an article somewhere, I think in a paper over christmas break…But I would say that percentage wise we have the lowest abuse rate, our Church is HUGE!!

There is no way to know that. One may hope it, but it does no good to believe or promote a notion for which there is no evidence.

The mere size of an organization means nothing in terms of the prevalence of abuse. As a society, we are ignorant of the extent or concentration of the problem. The information on the American Catholic Church is the most extensive study to date, according the the February bishop’s committee report.

What is more troubling than the small percentage of abusive priests is the large percentage of bishops who covered up and enabled. That is a problem that is not being addressed.

Another problem which gets no attention is what non-abusive priests knew, and when they knew it.

I can only applaud the bishop’s committee for their February report. It was very good work.

 

[rfk]

Ken:

The information on the American Catholic Church is the most extensive study to date, according the the February bishop’s committee report…I can only applaud the bishop’s committee for their February report. It was very good work.

I agree that it is the most extensive to date, and as such, and I am grateful that the bishops was willing to bring the truth to light.

Ken:

There is no way to know that. One may hope it, but it does no good to believe or promote a notion for which there is no evidence.

One can criticize that “no other reports are as extensive or accurate” – after all, we just said the National Review Board Audit Reports were “most extensive study to date”. But that is far different that saying “there is no evidence”. If one is going to be fair and balanced we can’t completely ignore any other reports simply because they haven’t undergone the same rigorously designed study. In fact, I would assert such a study is quite impossible given the variety and decentralized nature of Protestant denominations – after all, I’ve heard figures stating there are between 30,000 to 50,000 different Protestant denominations in the US.

I’ve read many other news reports that outline the problem among Protestant clergy and Rabbis as well. Just a couple of quotes from the Catholic League at: catholicleague.org/research/abuse_in_social_context.htm.

According to a 2000 report to the Baptist General Convention in Texas, “The incidence of sexual abuse by clergy has reached ‘horrific proportions.’” It noted that in studies done in the 1980s, 12 percent of ministers had “engaged in sexual intercourse with members” and nearly 40 percent had “acknowledged sexually inappropriate behavior.” The report concluded that “The disturbing aspect of all research is that the rate of incidence for clergy exceeds the client-professional rate for physicians and psychologists.”

Christian Science Monitor:

The conclusion: “Despite headlines focusing on the priest pedophile problem in the Roman Catholic Church, most American churches being hit with child sexual-abuse allegations are Protestant, and most of the alleged abusers are not clergy or staff, but church volunteers.”

Rabbi Joel Meyers, executive vice president of the Conservative Rabbinical Assembly, reports that 30 percent of rabbis who changed positions in 2000 did so involuntarily, and that sexual abuse was a factor in many instances.

Just a few websites entirely devoted to Non-Catholic sexual abuse: reformation.com
kensmen.com/catholic/clergysexabuse.html
theawarenesscenter.org (The Jewish Coalition Against Sexual Abuse/Assault)

In addition, both Canada and Australia are currently involved in major child sex abuse scandals that involve Anglican ministers, not Catholic priests.

Furthermore, the very nature of our Church structure guarantees that abuse claims will be disproportionately recorded against Catholics. It is common situation for a Protestant minister to open his own little country church and attract 50-100 families to his ministry. There is no hierarchy to report to. There are no assets to attach if sued. If he has sex with a teenage boy, there may be legal consequences, but it is simply buried in the noise as far as the national media is concerned.

In contrast, the Catholic Church is a hierarchical organization with parish clergy subordinate to their Bishop. Each Catholic priest has a diocesan dossier that records official complaints – and such dossiers have provided the material for many legal actions.
Father Raymond J. de Souza:

Hierarchical structure also means that Catholic priests can be forced into treatment under obedience. Indeed, since about 1990 the procedures of most dioceses – with some notable exceptions – in Canada and the United States would have a credibly accused priest out of his parish and in a treatment centre within days, even against his will. Protestant ministers, for the most part, cannot be so compelled. So if you look at who is in treatment, the data would skew toward Catholics.

 

[rfk]

Ken:

What is more troubling than the small percentage of abusive priests is the large percentage of bishops who covered up and enabled.

I think this is a mixed bag. There were definitely cases like ex-priest John Geoghan where there was an unconscionable history of coverup. But, there is always the temptation to judge historical actions using contemporary standards. For example, the contemporary view of the Inquisition is far different than how people judged it 500 years ago. Over 1/2 of the reported abuse cases occurred in the 1970’s. And back then, the Bishops were faced with a pretty uniform assessment from the mental health profession that the proper course of action was treatment, and then a return to work. Now, of course, we live in a society that believes a sexual predator can never be rehabilitated. But that wasn’t the professional advice the Bishops received 25 years ago. I personally assess the Bishops handling of those cases more charitably.

 

[Stylteralmaldo]

rfk:

…It is predominantly a homosexual problem…

rfk:

I will respectfully disagree with you. You should keep in mind that the Catholic Church is not against homosexuals, but against the homosexual lifestyle. This is a distinct difference.

Abuse is abuse and it should be looked at that way. Whether they are homosexual or heterosexual, it needs to be looked at from the angle of an individual looking to have power or control or another person.

 

[rfk]

Stylteralmaldo:

rfk:

…It is predominantly a homosexual problem…

I will respectfully disagree with you. You should keep in mind that the Catholic Church is not against homosexuals, but against the homosexual lifestyle. This is a distinct difference.

You are correct in pointing out that I should have distinguished between an individual homosexual person, who is also a child of God, and the group of behaviors, lifestyles, and political agenda that characterizes a subset of homosexual people.

Perhaps I should have more appropriately stated it as:

It is predominantly a homosexual behavior problem, symptomatic of the so-called “Gay” lifestyle and political agenda.

 

[Stylteralmaldo]

Thanks for clarifying rfk. The homosexual community tend to feel alienated from Christianity in its lack of compassion sometimes. I’m not accusing you of such. Take care and God bless you.

 

[kamz]

We can’t allow priest, pastor, teachers, adults, etc. to get away with any kind of abuse but to leave the Catholic church because of a few bad seeds is not the answer. A priest is not the reason that I’m Catholic, I don’t worship my priest, I worship God, I will never leave the Catholic church, the church herself has done nothing wrong. Yes, an abusive priest must be dealt with as anybody in society convicted of such a crime but for the one priest that abuses there are thousands who don’t, you can’t take it out on all the excellent priests that don’t abuse that are out there. Its not ok, it must be dealt with but leaving the Catholic church is NOT the answer.

 

[Disillusioned]

I have not left the church, my experience with an abusive priest does not lessen my hope that the new brooms are going sweep clean.I’d have called myself another name if I had gone for good.

 

[Stylteralmaldo]

I’m glad you’re still in the flock disallusioned.

I will keep you in my prayers.