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The Forum > Article Comments > The Catholic Church: institutionalised sexual violence against children > Comments

The Catholic Church: institutionalised sexual violence against children : Comments

By Sheleyah Courtney, published 23/11/2012

How has the Catholic Church escaped the consequences of its attitude towards child abuse?

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Once upon a time and not so long ago there were various media codes which prohibited priests or ministers of religion, and even the church itself, being portrayed in any kind of negative way particularly on TV or at the movies. I suspect such was probably also the case in literature of all kinds.
Blasphemy laws would have been part of this arsenal of prohibition.
Posted by Daffy Duck, Friday, 23 November 2012 11:17:51 AM
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I am just old enough to recall Smiths Weekly in the late forties and its stories of young mothers-to-be being used as cheap labour in church laundries and other rather vile stories, then treated as unbelievable by the main stream newspapers.

To-day the SMH has an alarming story; "Diagnosis was 'smokescreen' to hide known paedophiles". One such was a teacher in no less than eleven schools. Why was he moved and how many victims has he left shattered and at how many locations?

The churches' assets need to be sold up and the funds distributed as compensation. The Ellis Defense which protects the church from paying just compensation in NSW needs to be legislated out of existence.

In the UK two cases have been decided that the church appoints and provides the education and facilities for priests and is therefore responsible for them and their activities in the community.
Posted by Foyle, Friday, 23 November 2012 2:37:33 PM
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...Studies have shown that the population of the Catholic Church clergy harbors paedophiles at a similar rate to the outside population, which is around 4%. This does not excuse the small element of child molesters in the Church anymore than it excuses the small element of child molesters in the community.

...I find it hard to imagine any good will come from the “Royal Commission” which may change this “factor of evil” in the Church: So it appears to me that the huge expense of a “Royal Commission” will only benefit Lawyers, and add further harm to the victims of the cover-up in the end.

...The Catholic Church has made concerted efforts to address the problem of paedophile priests and is making progress; unfortunately not fast enough to meet community expectations.

...I think a “Royal Commission” into prostitution would be better value and unearth more child abuse than the RC Church is currently accused of smothering. I am also sure that an inquiry at the level of a "Royal Commission" would "blow the lid off" some "smug" preconceived ideas that prostitution harms nobody in our community. One can't help but notice the word prostitution and child abuse are never mentioned in the same breath by its majority supporters, interested ( as is the paeodphile), in their own sexual gratification at the expense of young women, and increasingly children. (Lets identify more accurately who are truly the paedophiles in our communities)!

Prostitution promotes paedophiles in our communities vastly more so than does the Catholic Church. Can one conclude then, the Catholic Church is being pursued for money...I think this is a real possibility, and closer to the truth!
Posted by diver dan, Friday, 23 November 2012 3:02:40 PM
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DD I'm sure I,ve recently come across two or three presumably well researched articles that put the rate of sexual abuse of children among Catholic clergy as seven or eight time the population norm. Can you cite the studies that show them to be equivalent?
Also, you use the word "harbor" which normally means protect or shelter. Did you mean that?
Posted by GlenC, Friday, 23 November 2012 7:03:44 PM
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Oh come now, Dan -- with all the recent exposures of priestly child molesters the acknowledged figure has risen to at least one in six, or 16%. And that's just the ones who have been revealed, while the 4% figure is an estimate of all perpetrators, discovered or undiscovered. Perhaps we should just turn the question around, and ask whether there are Catholic priests who can prove they AREN'T sexual abusers of children.

The Church has simply been criminally stupid. Once they could afford to recruit bright, competent people and turn a blind eye to their sexual peccadilloes; but that ceased to be possible at least fifty years ago, and since then they have been recruiting from an ever-dwindling pool of increasingly peculiar people. Now they're reaping the results.

The fact that they are a religion may have encouraged this bizarre policy, but as far as the effects are concerned it wouldn't matter whether they were butchers or real estate agents or merchant bankers. Make it a job prerequisite to renounce sex, and you instantly reduce your potential recruits to a tiny cluster of liars and the deluded. Cut that in half by picking one gender only, and... well, we can see the results.
Posted by Jon J, Friday, 23 November 2012 7:13:43 PM
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Comprehensive studies of sexual abuse rates show Catholic priests are far less than mainstream. See below. The John Jay report was completed independently as a result of secular media pressure in United States and handled this problem in enormous detail.

http://usccb.org/issues-and-action/child-and-youth-protection/upload/The-Causes-and-Context-of-Sexual-Abuse-of-Minors-by-Catholic-Priests-in-the-United-States-1950-2010.pdf

Secondly, with admitted communist and homosexual infiltration of the priesthood during the 20th century. (e.g. Read the books of Dr Bella Dodd, Father Malachi Martin, Michael Rose and many others), you can easily see why things got out of hand. Not believing in Catholic sacraments and placing yourself in the face of extreme evil as Catholic priests do, is going to lead you down a bad path very quickly.

We've already seen the back of most of these problems. I'm confident this is the case, based on what I have heard and seen. Where are these so called reports showing Catholic Priest Abuse rates are higher? I've never seen or heard of any whatsoever? Finally the Catholic hierarchy have the means the expunge the problem without being accused of another Inquisition by secular media.

The other key difference between today and the past, is no-one understands the sin of scandal today. It is a sin to scandalise others. Today no-one cares, and yet this sin is very damaging, as the secular media utilise it everyday to great effect AND WITH INTENT.

I'm also waiting for Secular Media to acknowledge Partial Birth Abortion as Child Abuse. Sticking scissors in a child's skull, sucking out its brains, and crushing the skull during birth, is supported by Obama, Hillary Clinton and many Emily's List types.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/01/AR2008040102197.html
http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Hillary_Clinton_Abortion.htm

What about Infanticide which Peter Singer has promoted as well? Where is the outcry here? Deafening silence.
http://www.equip.org/articles/peter-singers-bold-defense-of-infanticide/

Is not this Child Abuse as well?
Watch the uncensored English Video at bottom of this website.
http://www.durarealidad.com/
Posted by aga, Friday, 23 November 2012 8:12:57 PM
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