Posted on 10/17/2005 3:56:56 PM PDT by tuesday afternoon
If the Catholic Church wants to prevent sexual abuse by priests, several abuse experts said, there are better ways to do it than by trying to bar gay men from the clergy.
The church recently began checking American seminaries for ''evidence of homosexuality," and the pope is widely expected to ban actively gay men from taking holy orders.
But it will be tricky to cull gays from the priesthood, the abuse experts said this month. And it would be more effective -- and more humane -- to target likely abusers rather than all gays.
''There's no adequate way to screen out homosexuality," said Martin P. Kafka, a psychiatrist at Harvard's McLean Hospital. ''We don't have any lab tests."
-SNIP-
Still, when adults molest children past puberty, they tend to follow their sexual orientation. When the victims are older, straight men tend to molest girls and gay men molest boys. According to one survey, two-thirds of the victims were 12 or older when the abuse began.
-SNIP-
Furthermore, he said, he argued, ''If you have a policy of excluding homosexuals, all the applicants to the seminaries who are homosexual will just lie."
-SNIP-
And in current-day America, he added, gay people are much likelier to acknowledge and accept their sexual orientation, so they may present far lower risks than the repressed types of the old days
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
"I would say, a man or woman can be a priest."
That's nice. No where does the Holy Writ agree with you.
A married person that is not near their spouse, is not being chaste by not having relations, he is being faithful. I am out of here. Next we will hear about how a nun is being faithful to Christ, by not marrying or having children. When a Church ordains a minister, it is the one making the calling. God calls who he will, and cares not if you or I belong to a LLC or a cult.
So you equate heterosexuals and homosexuals as equal in the eyes of the Church, at least regarding their standing as priests? Why is that?
" There is NO DIFFERENCE legally, or psychlogically, between child molesters and pedophiles."
Nonsense. Pedophiles attack pre-pubescent children. Sexual abuse of a legal child can be either pre or post pubescent. As for your unwillingness to continue, well, that is your pattern Deacon. Noise, not substance.
The reality is this -- the sexual deviants who have infested the seminaries, hierarchies and chanceries of too many Dicasteries need to be expelled. The sooner the better. They are evil and destructive. Your attempts to obfuscate that reality does you no credit.
An unmarried person who remains chaste is also being faithful - to God. You seem to see that as unatural. Why?
Why would you not? Holy Orders is independent of the moral standing of the person who receives the sacrament.
This has been a constant teaching of the Church.
Come on now, don't display your ignorance so rampantly.
The courts distinguish between those who are psychologically propelled to commit sexual acts against children (pedophiles) and those who have commited isolated instances of child sexual molestation. So does the DSM (The Diagnostic Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association.)
I can sympathize with your passion but, please, check out the court records and the DSM first before you spout off.
Respectfully, I say it is both.
I've dealt with many priests who were referred to us by either the courts or the Catholic Church. They all were homosexual pedophiles inasmuch as they preferred sex with children. That their victims were mostly nearly-pubescent children was due to the fact (in the priests own words) that they had ready access to that age group and not to younger boys (whom they preferred) because these priests had resigned themselves that they were 'safe' (from disclosure) victimizing altar boys.
It has been and is illicit to ordain the sexual deviant, yes?
An openly practicing homosexual, yes. An openly practicing heterosexual, yes.
A chaste homosexual, no.
You have access to data that I don't. The public data is that post pubescent males are the victims in well over two thirds of the cases reported. That the satanic perps might have chosen younger victims either in their twisted fantasies or had opprotunities presented themselves notwithstanding, the evidence that is public argues for a homosexual problem, not a pedophiliac problem. Either way, jail them and keep them away - far away - from the public, especially the children.
See post 95. As for "openly practicing heterosexuals", since the Church has long ordained the widower, that is obviously not true. Your constant attempt to equate the queer with the non-queer keeps running up against reality Deacon. Your seminary formation suffered badly. I am so sorry for you.
I certainly agree with you on that.
A widower with a woman on the side (an "openly practicing heterosexual") will not get ordained.
However, if he commits to celibacy (not "openly practicing") he will get ordained.
Even you can see the difference, can't you?
Like it or not, the Church has always, and continues, to ordain chaste homosexuals.
I fully agree that, pedophile or not, it is a problem of homosexuality per se.
From my clinical experience, male homosexuals are at great risk for pedophilia.
It may be that many supposed celeibate types are actually not, and if closer watch is made they will be "outed." There has been a tendency to look the other way.
I know aomone who is a boy scout executive. The rule against homsexual scoutmasters is based on experience. They are not trustworthy.
"Like it or not, the Church has always, and continues, to ordain chaste homosexuals."
And too many fail, abuse children and wreak havock on the Church and the Faithful. You defend and applaud this horror, why Deacon?
I can almost follow you...but, please re-post legibly.
In my opinion, there should not be homosexual boy scoutmasters.
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