Posted on 11/02/2005 6:29:17 AM PST by Abathar
BAMBERG, Germany -- A U.S. Army chaplain has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of forcible sodomy against enlisted men.
Capt. Gregory Arflack, a 44-year-old Roman Catholic priest, apologized at his court-martial in Germany. He sobbed and said, "I've had a lot of time to pray and consider what I've done as a priest and an officer and I'm ashamed."
One of the victims, whom Arflack had been counseling about homesickness and family troubles, told the court, "I don't understand how a person of the cloth could do something like that."
He added, "I didn't believe God would allow something like that to happen."
Arflack confessed to plying three soldiers -- ages 18, 19 and 20 -- with alcohol and making unwanted advances. He forced oral sex on one soldier in the bathroom of a bar and on the other two at his home, where they had passed out on his sofa.
/snarky
NO, it's a gays in the military problem. Here is the show piece example that has been brought up before: What if the pervert is an NCO in charge of others; an officer, who has much power in any case? Well??
You see, somehow you have deceived yourself into thinking that the field is level, it is NOT. There are folks with real power over others, and, being perverted only exacerbates the situation. NOT ACCEPTABLE. Hang the b*****d, I'm not interested in "understanding" the idiot, just put him away so that he will not destroy others. Period.
Being "gay" is a mental disorder. Please convince me that it is "normal", not in my lifetime! Mental disorders disqualify one from service in the Armed Forces--Sec. 8 is still valid.
You are exactly right. Homosexuals molesting boys and young men occurs in every occupation--the media focuses on the church to undermine what is mostly an honorable institution of Christianity. I can remember living around the Bay Area of San Fransicko around 1970 and there was plenty of talk about queers picking up young boys. It was, and still is, a perverted obsession with most of the male homosexual crowd.
>The priest actually may or may not have been a homosexual.
But, targeting homosexuality, because of this incident of abuse, would be like targeting heterosexuality simply because the vast majority of rapes are committed by heterosexuals.
Sexual abuse is sexual abuse, period.<
This is a favorite kinard of the Homosexuals.Homosexuals prey on the young and the week.That is the nature of their perversian.They have lobbeyed to remove statutory rape laws to remove legal penalties for their perversian.
Homosexuals are a 100 times more likely to participate in sexual abuse of minors than hetrosexuals.
This pervert got off far too easy.
If you reread my post, I am not advocating for the system to go easy on this pervert, I am simply expressing my distaste for the fact that the only molestings/abuses (sexual) you hear of are those from the Catholic church...the Catholic church's priests are not the only clergy perpetrating these crimes...
Of course they are not. However, the church has earned a reputation for covering up sexual abuse, paying victims for silence, and reassigning molesters instead of turning them over to the authorities. If Muslim, Baptist, Evangelical or Buddhist clergy are convicted on molestation charges their cases should be made just as public as this was.
Shoulda left 'Captain's Mast' to the Navy.
WARNING! The following post is in extremely bad taste, which is what a story like this leaves in my mouth. We can discuss the leaves in my mouth later, but remember that this is autumn and it is important to breathe through your nose when you are outdoors.
Where was I?
Oh, yeah. That must be one tough chaplain. I'll bet he won't have to fight much in prison.
I didn't think of it like this. I understand what you're saying now. But, priests aren't supposed to be of an unusual sexual orientation, they are supposed to be ones who are willing to make the sacrifice for the Glory of God, i.e. overcome their natural desires. It isn't like they aren't supposed to HAVE any natural desires. I suppose that bolsters your argument as well, as it makes it more likely that they would slip.
It's not an easy road, but that's the way it is, and it isn't changing anytime soon. It CAN'T change, as far as that goes.
The only reason the Catholic church had more than it's fair share, compared to other religions, is because of its size.
US Religion Statistics, 2004*:
| Denomination name | Members (thousands) |
|---|---|
| The Roman Catholic Church | 66,407 |
| Southern Baptist Convention | 16,248 |
| United Methodist Church, The | 8,251 |
| Church of God in Christ, The | 5,500 |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, The | 5,411 |
| Evangelical Lutheran Church in America | 5,038 |
| National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc | 5,000 |
| National Baptist Convention of America, Inc | 3,500 |
| Presbyterian Church (USA) | 3,407 |
| Assemblies of God | 2,687 |
| Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), The | 2,513 |
| African Methodist Episcopal Church | 2,500 |
| National Missionary Baptist Convention of America | 2,500 |
| Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc | 2,500 |
| Episcopal Church | 2,334 |
| Churches of Christ | 1,500 |
| Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America | 1,500 |
| Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc | 1,500 |
| American Baptist Churches in the USA | 1,484 |
| African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church | 1,431 |
| United Church of Christ | 1,331 |
| Baptist Bible Fellowship International | 1,200 |
| Christian Churches and Churches of Christ | 1,072 |
| Jehovah's Witnesses | 1,022 |
| Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) | 945 |
| Seventh-day Adventist Church | 919 |
| Orthodox Church in America, The | 900 |
| Christian Methodist Episcopal Church | 850 |
| Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada | 786 |
"What other religions require celibacy? The religions I am familiar with encourage a normal sexual relationship with a spouse for their ministers/priests/whatchyacallems."
Celibacy is not the issue. Have you noticed how many teachers are molesting/raping students lately? Last time I checked, teachers were able to get married.
I used clergy as generic for all church officials of all christian denominations. I wasn't signaling out one in particular.
>The only reason the Catholic church had more than it's fair share, compared to other religions, is because of its size.<
You could use these numbers to explain why the Catholic Church would have more Homosexuals among its membership but it does not work for ministry problem.The Southern Baptist have more congregations in the United States than Catholics have Priests.(45,000 vs. 42,0000)It is a safe assumption their are in excess of 80,000 full time Southern Baptist ministers in the US.
If you add all of the Non-Catholic ministers together they probably out number Catholic Priest 3 or 4 to 1.I guess I should stop now.These figures seem to point to 25% of the ministry being responsible for 75%(swag)of the problem.
There have been 110,000 full-fledged priests in the Catholic Church in the US since 1952. Nine hundred and twenty-nine have been accused, not convicted of a sex crime from 1952 until now. Less than 1% of them have been accused.
How many Baptist preachers have been accused of or found guilty of a sex crime? http://www.reformation.com/CSA/hallock1.htm
Father Nelson ping.
Here we go again.
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