Catholic Priest Sex Abuse

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-16-2004
Catholic Priest Sex Abuse
29
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 11:31am
Low and behold, it was discovered that the Priests that were doing all this abuse with the kids were, get this, homosexual. Da! Is it any wonder some one who is sexually disoriented won’t have any moral boundaries what so ever? So to call yourself a priest and be an active homosexual is absurd. It just goes to show that sick people can slip into any profession.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-18-2004
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 11:42am
Oh boy....put your helmet on....here comes the artilery.

But just so you know it really isn'y Pedophilia. Almost all of these issues occured with teenage boys. Pedophiles typically are attracted to pre-pubescent children. It really is an issue of homosexual priests abusing their authority.

Good luck with this one and keep your head down and your skin thick.

:)

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 12:59pm
First, I am not Catholic second; I'm not going to "blast" you for your IMHO questionable opinion. I am however going to let you "hear" about pedophiles from the Pope.

Link and story below.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/pope_04-23-02.html

POPE STRONGLY CONDEMNS PRIEST CHILD ABUSE

In an unprecedented emergency meeting with American Catholic leaders, Pope John Paul II on Tuesday said there is no place for the sin and crime of pedophilia in the church, adding that the priesthood is no place "for those that would harm the young."

Addressing an emergency summit of Vatican officials and American Catholic leaders, including twelve cardinals and two bishops, the pontiff expressed hope that the scandal would eventually result in "a holier priesthood."

He offered comforting words to victims of priest abuse, saying, "To the victims and their families, wherever they may be, I express my profound sense of solidarity and concern."

The meeting is expected to determine whether the church will implement a policy on expelling pedophiles from the priesthood and turning them over to civil authorities. Leaders are speculating whether the pope will call for a 'zero tolerance' policy for priests who commit misconduct, or whether abusive priests should get a second chance.

John Paul expressed deep grievance at the scandal, saying, "The abuse which has caused this crisis is by every standard wrong and rightly considered a crime by society: it is also an appalling sin in the eyes of God." He also said that pedophiles must not be allowed to seek refuge in the priesthood.

The ailing 81-year-old pontiff asked American Catholics to stand by their priests and bishops in a period of deep crisis, saying the scandal should not tarnish the reputation of the entire church.

"A great work of art may be blemished, but its beauty remains," he said.

John Paul did not encourage discussion of a change in the celibacy rule for priests, despite speculation that a policy change could result from the scandal. The pontiff said Catholics "must know that bishops and priests are totally committed to the fullness of Catholic truth on matters of sexual morality."

Boston Cardinal Bernard Law was among the attendees in Rome. Law has come under fire after admitting he reassigned pedophile priests from parish to parish, and is facing intense pressure to step down. Despite such pressure, the issue of Law's resignation was not raised during the meetings, according to Chicago's Cardinal Francis George.

Law did, however, issue an apology to his fellow Catholic leaders, saying, "If I hadn't made some terrible mistakes, they probably wouldn't be at the Vatican this week."

Similar scandals involving the clergy have emerged in recent years, in such countries as Austria, Poland, Ireland, Mexico and France.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 1:24pm
The noun "pedophilia" has 1 sense in WordNet.

1. pedophilia, paedophilia -- (sexual activity of an adult with a child)

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oi=defmore&q=define:pedophilia

The noun "child" has 4 senses in WordNet.

1. child, kid, youngster, minor, shaver, nipper, small fry, tiddler, tike, tyke, fry, nestling -- (a young person of either sex; "she writes books for children"; "they're just kids"; "`tiddler' is a British term for youngsters")

http://www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn?stage=1&word=child


This does not only involve boys under the age of 18, there are several cases of girls as young as 13 getting pregnant by their parish priest.

Sorry I don’t have links at this time, if you like I will find them and post them later when I have more time

This is not an issue of homosexual behavior; it is an issue of child abuse that was hidden for many years.

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-18-2004
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 1:29pm
"This does not only involve boys under the age of 18, there are several cases of girls as young as 13 getting pregnant by their parish priest. "

There are isolated cases yes, but the VAST majority (I'll look for stats if you like) are male on male and most of the boys are teens.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 5:25pm
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What is the point of this statement? What are you trying to get at? Could you elaborate? Taking advantage of a child, male or female is child abuse and should not have been condoned or hidden as it was.





iVillage Member
Registered: 05-18-2004
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 6:33pm
The point is that many homosexuals want to make this an issue of pedophilia and child abuse and ignore that the primary reason for this problem is homosexuals.
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 7:00pm
I thought that's what you meant, but I wanted you to post it to be sure. Child abuse and sexual abuse are perpetrated by all segments of society. Being heterosexual or homosexual has no direct correlation to a predilection toward pedophilia, incest, child abuse ect.

I sincerely hope that was not what you meant. If it was, we have a lot to discuss, if not I apologize.

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-18-2004
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 9:38pm
"Being heterosexual or homosexual has no direct correlation to a predilection toward pedophilia, incest, child abuse ect.

I sincerely hope that was not what you meant. If it was, we have a lot to discuss, if not I apologize. "

I am not asserting that homosexuals are more likely to be pedophiles.

What I am saying is that

1. this isn't typical pedophilia because most of the victims are teenage boys not young children.

2. Homosexuality is a major part of the problems surrounding the catholic abuse scandals.




iVillage Member
Registered: 03-24-2003
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 10:30pm
I'm not sure I should answer in this thread... my thanks to iferbach for her reasoned point of view.

Those who condemn homosexuality, those that lump it in with pedophelia, marrying your dog, etc... all have one thing in common: they are giving vent to feelings and opinion that is rooted in ignorance and insecurity. When those two combine, when we see something we are not familiar with, we will frequently view it as a threat. And people have great fear of being thought of as abnormal, as not part of a group... by pointing out others that they perceive are different, they attempt to deflect attention from themselves and onto others... then they can have something in common with others: hatred and or distrust of the "different" group, thus developing a common bond and a feeling of security with the group.

Homosexuals are not sexually disoriented. They are naturally oriented towards their own sex. And there is no correlation with pedophelia. The lgbt community strongly condemns those who commit these heinous acts, and we wish them brought to justice. Our orientation is to *adults* of the same sex.

I've great interest in protecting children. I've many reasons for it, and I'm not going to list all that motivates me to feel that way. And I'm resisting posting a much stronger reply out of respect to iVillage, and to all within the iVillage community I respect.

My community is a good one. It is caring. It is loving. We are diverse. We respect others. We are conservative. We are liberal. We could be anyone, from anywhere. Your sons, your daughters. Your fathers, your mothers. Your grandmother. Grandfather. Sister. Brother. Cousins. Friends. Coworker. Partner... for many of us come out at a later age, finally able to find what is within. We are not to be feared.

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-25-2003
Fri, 06-25-2004 - 10:41pm

The Dallas Morning News recently did an investigative series looking into where these priests are ending up.


"Catholic priests accused of sexually abusing children are hiding abroad and working in church ministries, The Dallas Morning News has found..."


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/longterm/stories/062004dnpropriestoverview.275bc8e59.html


They also have a good multimedia presentation

Renee

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