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HagiaSophia
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The U.S. bishops are commissioning a study on the causes of sex abuse by clergy. And they are looking at the problem in terms of an epidemic.
At their annual meeting in November in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops approved plans by its National Review Board for the Protection of Children and Young People to commission a study on the “causes and context” of the crisis.
The board has asked leading universities and private research firms to submit proposals for conducting the study. Nicholas Cafardi, dean of the Duquesne University Law School and chairman of the National Review Board, said Jan. 14 that he and other board members will begin reviewing proposals and interviewing top contenders in February. The study could take several years and cost millions of dollars, he said, and the bishops’ conference is seeking grants to pay for it.
An earlier study, concluded in February 2004 by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, reported that 4,392 clergymen — almost all priests — were accused of sexually abusing 10,667 minors between 1950 and 2002…"
"…But some experts are concerned about who will be chosen to conduct the research and the possibility that ideology might color the findings.
“The basic problem is homosexual behavior between priests and adolescent males,” said Dr. Rick Fitzgibbons, a psychiatrist and co-author of the Catholic Medical Association’s handbook “Homosexuality and Hope” (Homosexuality - Catholic Medical Association : Catholic Medical Association). “The John Jay report showed that 80% of the abuse by priests occurred with adolescent males, not young children.”
Fitzgibbons, of Philadelphia, said existing research and his own professional experiences tell him a major cause of child sexual abuse is “weak masculine identity combined with profound loneliness” among the ranks of perpetrators. Those same factors, he believes, lead men to choose homosexuality.
“The challenge to getting accurate study results is that most in the mental-health field do not accept homosexuality as having an emotional origin,” Fitzgibbons said. “They see it as genetic. So I hope they can find researchers who would be open to the fact that there are emotional causes of homosexual behavior between adult males and adolescents. There’s also the principle of evil, sin and lust. Researchers who believe homosexuality is a genetic condition are going to minimize some important factors that need to be studied.”
Fitzgibbons said he’d be surprised if the study examines the practice of allowing homosexuals into seminaries as a potential cause of the abuse crisis.
“You’re going to get results that reflect the researchers’ views on homosexuality,” Fitzgibbons said. “The results of the John Jay study, by showing that 80% of the victims were adolescent males, is a source of embarrassment to the homosexual community, and there’s a tremendous effort afoot to distance homosexuality from the sexual-abuse crisis. The challenge will be to find a university or research team that can resist social pressures and pursue the truth…”
ncregister.com/current/0130lead3.htm
At their annual meeting in November in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops approved plans by its National Review Board for the Protection of Children and Young People to commission a study on the “causes and context” of the crisis.
The board has asked leading universities and private research firms to submit proposals for conducting the study. Nicholas Cafardi, dean of the Duquesne University Law School and chairman of the National Review Board, said Jan. 14 that he and other board members will begin reviewing proposals and interviewing top contenders in February. The study could take several years and cost millions of dollars, he said, and the bishops’ conference is seeking grants to pay for it.
An earlier study, concluded in February 2004 by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, reported that 4,392 clergymen — almost all priests — were accused of sexually abusing 10,667 minors between 1950 and 2002…"
"…But some experts are concerned about who will be chosen to conduct the research and the possibility that ideology might color the findings.
“The basic problem is homosexual behavior between priests and adolescent males,” said Dr. Rick Fitzgibbons, a psychiatrist and co-author of the Catholic Medical Association’s handbook “Homosexuality and Hope” (Homosexuality - Catholic Medical Association : Catholic Medical Association). “The John Jay report showed that 80% of the abuse by priests occurred with adolescent males, not young children.”
Fitzgibbons, of Philadelphia, said existing research and his own professional experiences tell him a major cause of child sexual abuse is “weak masculine identity combined with profound loneliness” among the ranks of perpetrators. Those same factors, he believes, lead men to choose homosexuality.
“The challenge to getting accurate study results is that most in the mental-health field do not accept homosexuality as having an emotional origin,” Fitzgibbons said. “They see it as genetic. So I hope they can find researchers who would be open to the fact that there are emotional causes of homosexual behavior between adult males and adolescents. There’s also the principle of evil, sin and lust. Researchers who believe homosexuality is a genetic condition are going to minimize some important factors that need to be studied.”
Fitzgibbons said he’d be surprised if the study examines the practice of allowing homosexuals into seminaries as a potential cause of the abuse crisis.
“You’re going to get results that reflect the researchers’ views on homosexuality,” Fitzgibbons said. “The results of the John Jay study, by showing that 80% of the victims were adolescent males, is a source of embarrassment to the homosexual community, and there’s a tremendous effort afoot to distance homosexuality from the sexual-abuse crisis. The challenge will be to find a university or research team that can resist social pressures and pursue the truth…”
ncregister.com/current/0130lead3.htm
