1. The statement in the article that "......sexual abusers in general account for less than 2 percent of Catholic priests" makes no reference to the USA. It could be a global figure. The figure of 4% cited in the John Jay report pertains to the US.
Is it possible that clerical abuse was more widespread in the US than in other parts of the world? Not only possible, but likely.
2. The John Jay figures document accusations of abuse. Not the same thing as guilt.
1. The statement in the article that "......sexual abusers in general account for less than 2 percent of Catholic priests" makes no reference to the USA. It could be a global figure. The figure of 4% cited in the John Jay report pertains to the US.
Is it possible that clerical abuse was more widespread in the US than in other parts of the world? Not only possible, but likely.
2. The John Jay figures document accusations of abuse. Not the same thing as guilt.
3. Catholics who will ignore or skew numbers to advance a preconceived agenda. For example, another Catholic FReeper recently stated "A father, who is a minister and teachers Bible Study....is a far more likely case for a molester than any priest" but did not cite any studies or apples-for-apples comparitive numbers to support the biased accusation.