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Mean Men (Priests commit no more abuse than other males)
Newsweek ^ | April 9, 2010 | Pat Wingert

Posted on 04/09/2010 6:16:37 AM PDT by NYer

The Catholic sex-abuse stories emerging every day suggest that Catholics have a much bigger problem with child molestation than other denominations and the general population. Many point to peculiarities of the Catholic Church (its celibacy rules for priests, its insular hierarchy, its exclusion of women) to infer that there's something particularly pernicious about Catholic clerics that predisposes them to these horrific acts. It's no wonder that, back in 2002—when the last Catholic sex-abuse scandal was making headlines—a Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll found that 64 percent of those queried thought Catholic priests "frequently'' abused children.

Yet experts say there's simply no data to support the claim at all. No formal comparative study has ever broken down child sexual abuse by denomination, and only the Catholic Church has released detailed data about its own. But based on the surveys and studies conducted by different denominations over the past 30 years, experts who study child abuse say they see little reason to conclude that sexual abuse is mostly a Catholic issue. "We don't see the Catholic Church as a hotbed of this or a place that has a bigger problem than anyone else," said Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. "I can tell you without hesitation that we have seen cases in many religious settings, from traveling evangelists to mainstream ministers to rabbis and others."

Since the mid-1980s, insurance companies have offered sexual misconduct coverage as a rider on liability insurance, and their own studies indicate that Catholic churches are not higher risk than other congregations. Insurance companies that cover all denominations, such as Guide One Center for Risk Management, with more than 40,000 church clients, does not charge Catholic churches higher premiums.

(Excerpt) Read more at newsweek.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: catholic; mean; protestant
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1 posted on 04/09/2010 6:16:38 AM PDT by NYer
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To: NYer

How many men have bosses who help cover it up?


2 posted on 04/09/2010 6:17:25 AM PDT by Wolfie
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To: netmilsmom; thefrankbaum; markomalley; Tax-chick; GregB; saradippity; Berlin_Freeper; Litany; ...
Most child abusers have one thing in common, and it's not piety—it's preexisting relationships with their victims. That includes priests and ministers and rabbis, of course, but also family members, friends, neighbors, teachers, coaches, scout leaders, youth-group volunteers, and doctors. According to federal studies, three quarters of abuse occurs at the hands of family members or others in the victim's "circle of trust."

Catholic Ping
Please freepmail me if you want on/off this list


3 posted on 04/09/2010 6:17:37 AM PDT by NYer ("Where Peter is, there is the Church." - St. Ambrose of Milan)
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To: NYer

I would expect people who dedicate their lives to God would have a slightly better record than the typical man.


4 posted on 04/09/2010 6:18:21 AM PDT by DManA
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To: Wolfie

Exactly. The problem is not the frequency of occurrence, it’s what happens after it’s discovered.


5 posted on 04/09/2010 6:21:32 AM PDT by delapaz
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To: NYer

Funny how a possible direct correlation between the Catholic faith and sexual abuse can be freely and publicly debated, while a direct connection between the Muslim faith and terrorism is off the table for fear of offending.


6 posted on 04/09/2010 6:24:04 AM PDT by Right Brother
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To: Right Brother
Bill Handel, a talk show host on KFI (L.A.) had a spot on nudist camps in SoCalifornia. He focused on their allowing adolescent children to romp around among the adults, while getting perfect tans. Then he noted the number of lawsuits filed against the camps for sexual harrassment: ZERO

He then asked the question: Why is it safer to send your child to a nudist camp than to the Catholic church?

The argument is filled with fallacies, but funny.

7 posted on 04/09/2010 6:28:33 AM PDT by Loud Mime (initialpoints.net - - The Constitution as the center of politics -- Download the graph)
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To: NYer

The priesthood is a good place for perverts to hide.


8 posted on 04/09/2010 6:29:57 AM PDT by Judges Gone Wild (Who is this uncircumcised, to oppose the armies of The Living God?)
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To: delapaz

What happens afterward ensures greater frequency.


9 posted on 04/09/2010 6:31:23 AM PDT by Judges Gone Wild (Who is this uncircumcised, to oppose the armies of The Living God?)
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To: Judges Gone Wild
Is this the edifying comment of a Christian? If you were a Christian, you would be praying that all Christians be strengthened against sin and the attacks of Satan.

We don't need a circular firing squad among Christian denominations.

10 posted on 04/09/2010 6:34:27 AM PDT by CWW (Palin & Jindal in 2012!!)
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To: NYer

I don’t for a minute believe that one in 10 men sexually abuse children, but a guy from an organization dedicated to sexually abused children might want to believe that.

As to the ministry and different denominations, I think the only possibly differentiating line would be the prevalence of homosexuality in the differing denominations if, as some studies seem to show, there is proportionately more abuse with gay rather than heterosexual men.


11 posted on 04/09/2010 6:36:21 AM PDT by 9YearLurker
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To: Judges Gone Wild

I would say in some diocese that USED to be true. But those who did not belong in the preisthood to begin with have been weeded out and that is definitel no longer the case.


12 posted on 04/09/2010 6:36:26 AM PDT by CTK YKC
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To: NYer

Priests are not men, they claim to be representatives of God.

The fact that so many of them commit such heinous acts is proof they do not represent God.

The fact that the vatican does not excommunicate and turn them over to the cops is proof the the church does not represent God.

By their works shall ye know them.


13 posted on 04/09/2010 6:41:11 AM PDT by SENTINEL (SGT USMC COMBAT VET)
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To: NYer

How can people continue to insist that a system which accepts only men uninterested in women and and then grants them spiritual and temporal authority over young males is not an ironclad guarantee of terrible abuses?


14 posted on 04/09/2010 6:50:28 AM PDT by UK_Jeffersonian
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To: DManA

Molesters cannot be said to be terribly dedicated to God. Using a front of dedication to God, however, is an excellent disguise for a freak.


15 posted on 04/09/2010 6:52:32 AM PDT by TalBlack
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To: UK_Jeffersonian

“How can people continue to insist that a system which accepts only men uninterested in women and and then grants them spiritual and temporal authority over young males is not an ironclad guarantee of terrible abuses?”

You’ll find this wherever you find PEOPLE period. Schoolteachers can marry...


16 posted on 04/09/2010 6:55:55 AM PDT by TalBlack
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To: UK_Jeffersonian
How can people continue to insist that a system which accepts only men uninterested in women and and then grants them spiritual and temporal authority over young males is not an ironclad guarantee of terrible abuses?

Whoever said these men were not interested in women? The Catholic Church does have some married priests but these are in the Eastern Catholic Churches and amongst converts from protestant denominations. Even in the Eastern churches, though, there have always been some restrictions on marriage and ordination. Although married men may become priests, unmarried priests may not marry, and married priests, if widowed, may not remarry. Moreover, there is an ancient Eastern discipline of choosing bishops from the ranks of the celibate monks, so their bishops are all unmarried. Priestly celibacy is not an unchangeable dogma but a disciplinary rule.

St. Paul makes a case for preferring celibacy to marriage: "Are you free from a wife? Do not seek marriage. . . those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. . . . The unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; but the married man is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried woman or girl is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please her husband" (7:27-34).

Paul’s conclusion: He who marries "does well; and he who refrains from marriage will do better" (7:38).

If this is your argument, then please explain

Sexual Abuse of Children by Protestant Ministers

A local rabbi, married with children, was recently arrested for sexual abuse of children. As you can see, there is no difference between those who choose marriage and those who prefer the celibate life.

17 posted on 04/09/2010 6:59:50 AM PDT by NYer ("Where Peter is, there is the Church." - St. Ambrose of Milan)
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To: NYer

Priests are in a position of trust which amplifies their crimes many fold.


18 posted on 04/09/2010 7:00:14 AM PDT by TangoLimaSierra (To the left the truth looks Right-Wing.)
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To: Wolfie
How many men have bosses who help cover it up?

Sexual Abuse of Children by Protestant Ministers

19 posted on 04/09/2010 7:00:38 AM PDT by NYer ("Where Peter is, there is the Church." - St. Ambrose of Milan)
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To: CWW

No kidding. Satan must be sitting back with a big smile while Christians tear each other apart instead of praying for one another.


20 posted on 04/09/2010 7:01:06 AM PDT by greatplains
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