Sex runs rampant in the Catholic Church

Capitol Hill Blue ^ | January 9, 2003 | DOUG THOMPSON

[arj]

Recent revelations that at least 40 percent of Catholic nuns in the United States are victims of sexual abuse are just part of a growing sex scandal in the Church that goes far beyond the abuse of young boys by priests.

Capitol Hill Blue has learned that internal investigations by the Church have uncovered massive evidence of frequent sexual activity by both nuns and priests (often with each other), use of Church money to pay for abortions for pregnant nuns and a “casual and tolerant attitude towards sexual activity among Church leaders.”

Details of the investigations are a closely guarded secret of the Church hierarchy, but sources tell CHB that the results are being closely studied by Vatican officials who express “shock and outrage” at the high levels of sex involving priests and nuns.

“For God’s sake, this is the Church. It is not a bordello,” exclaimed one priest involved in the investigation. “This is a crime against God.”

In interviews with current nuns and priests, as well as with a number of clergy who have left the church, a disturbing portrait of immoral activity within Church walls emerges, including:

--Priests who regularly have sex with female parishioners. According to two sources, as many as 5,000 priests in the U.S. have been discovered to have had affairs with parishioners.

--At least 34,000 nuns who admit sexual abuse or activity.

--Frequent sexual contact between priests and nuns. The investigations are said to have found “dozens” of cases where nuns who became pregnant from these affairs had abortions paid for out of Church funds (even though the Church opposes abortions).

--Hundreds of confirmed reports of lesbian sexual encounters among nuns as well as homosexual contact between priests.

--Hundreds of cases where priests and nuns leave the Church and marry shortly afterwards, many having children conceived while they were still Church clergy.

“You are dealing with human beings with human failings,” admits Jonathan, an ex-priest who left the Church years ago and married a former nun. Their oldest child was conceived during an affair when both were still in the Church. Jonathan agreed to be interviewed only on condition that neither his last name nor his wife’s name be used for this article.

“Yes, we both took vows of chastity but we broke those vows,” he says. “We weren’t the only ones. I knew several priests in my diocese who broke their vows as well. My wife knew many nuns who violated their vows.”

Jonathan says stories about rampant sexual activity among priests and nuns circulated in the Church for years but that Catholic leaders looked the other way.

“There were two hypocrisies at work,” he says. “One because some of the Church leaders were, themselves, unfaithful to their vows and the other because everyone knew the damage to the church if this ever became public.”

Only when confronted with the revelations last year of widespread abuse of children and the subsequent cover up has the church taken a closer look at the sexual activity.

"The bishops appear to be only looking at the issue of child sexual abuse, but the problem is bigger than that," says St. Louis University researcher Ann Wolf, one of those who authored the study on widespread sexual abuse of nuns. "Catholic sisters are being violated, in their ministries, at work, in pastoral counseling."

St. Louis University conducted a national survey of nuns in 1996 but the Church-affiliated school never publicly released the results. The study, paid for by several of the nun orders, was turned over to the Church. Wolf and the other researchers found 34,000 nuns who had been either sexually abused or engaged in sexual activity.

“What they found were those who admitted it,” says Jonathan. “There were, and are, many others.”

Jonathan admits his wife was not his first sexual partner while he wore the robes of priesthood. He had affairs with female parishioners and other nuns.

“It was all done with a wink and a nod,” he says. “Just about everybody knew what was happening but nobody wanted to do anything about it.”

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops claims to know nothing of the studies and refuses to comment on the specifics of this article. Phone calls to various Catholic officials and Vatican offices were not returned.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

LOL - Trust me - the church getting in dutch over clerics molesting young boys has nothing to do with the pro-life or anti contraception stance of the RCC. That is just whacky.

[Gophack]

I respectfully disagree with you. As for your second post, I don't understand what you meant so I would rather not comment.

All I can say is that I know many good and holy priests, nuns and other religious who are serving God. As for those who have fallen, I pray for them.

God bless.

[Belial]

I have never truly met a "happy" single person.

I'm sorry about that. They exist within a square mile of you, most likely.

Then again, "happy" isn't a very objective word, and who knows what's running through your head. This whole thread is a good example of how far the Church can deviate from its true mission: spirituality. Do you think God really gives a damn about pimply 15yr olds masturbating at night, or if the parish priest can find a wife?

This concept of God is so bizarre I can't imagine entertaining it for long, without the use of hard drugs. By now I should have learned to never underestimate the power of delusion.

[Steve_Seattle]

"petros . . . petra"

My Greek is rusty, but I think your reply to CPA is correct. I do not think petros and petra are two different words (little stone vs. massive rock) in Greek, as CPA claimed, but the same word in a different case. Petros is used as a subject, whereas petra is the object of a preposition, and I think the word has a different ending depending how it is used in the sentence.

[NCLou]

I am a married Catholic, not a priest, so I can't speak first hand, but I can't see why there is so much talk about celibacy as if it is impossible. Sure celibacy is very very difficult. However, so is being a navy seal or a firefighter or a Nascar driver. Certainly I would think the drive to avoid pain or protect one's life is as great as the need to have sex/a family. However, for many people the risk of death or injury etc, while it exists, is dealt with by a stronger desire to serve one's country, fellow man, or achieve fame and fortune.

A priest has to have a desire to do God's work that is great enough to overcome the temptation. The difference is, I couldn't get anywhere near being a navy seal with a normal fear of pain and sense of self preservation. Unfortunately, the priesthood has not been as selective.

Despite understaffed parishes and the shortage of priests, clearing out this element of the clergy will in the long run benefit the church. Vocations will increase when priests are more likely to be true role models worthy of respect and admiration. And celibacy in our culture of sex is just a "brave" and "tough" a life choice in its way as being a firefighter. Parents have been faced with too many crooked, effeminant, ineffectual, greedy, etc. priests in the last 30 years, its no wonder none would encourage their sons to think about vocations.

When you start showing me priest after priest in parish after parish that are worthy of admiration (ie strong, intelligent, tough, honest, faithful, masculine, and protective of tradition), you will start to see parents who will be proud to see their sons enter the priesthood.

It may have to get worse before it gets better.

[Capt. Tom]

Ohhh! So, the phrase filthy hateful Catholics should be perfectly fine. I'll make sure I remember this the next time the Catholic censors come by to yank my posts.

OK Woody I am going to have to give you the long version since you are undoubtably not an older Catholic.

Here's the story.
In the 1930s 1940s and 50s there were stories spread by protestants about tunnels constructed between the priest houses and the convent and various sexual stories circulated. The Catholics took umbrage with these stories and castigated the people who were spreading them.

But recent revelations show some of this was true. I was just spoofing the Catholics who for years castigated the protestants about circulation stories about the priests and nuns, but now because of the documented horror stories about the priests sexual escapades, the Catholics have to eat crow.

So I was not calling protestants filthy and hateful, it was to remind older Catholics what they called them in an earlier period of time.

Kind of like we have met the enemy and they are us. - Tom

[eastsider]

The nominative and dative cases of petra do indeed have different endings (-a and -h, respectively); however, petros is masculine, and petra is feminine.

[rwfromkansas]

What else would you expect from a church that considers the Pope King instead of Christ?

[ACAC]

I don't believe any church that we now know was around at the time of Christ. I think he meant that Peter was suppose to spread the gospel. Jesus was not refering to a specific denomination.

[rwfromkansas]

Yep, you are right. Peter is the rock of the church, not Christ.

/sarcasm

[rwfromkansas]

outside Biblical bounds of marriage, yes.

[Bluntpoint]

Please share your vision of spirituality and the requisite drugs needed to be an adherent to your view.

15 year olds do not masturbate. 15 year olds fine tune.

[rwfromkansas]

Sorry. The Bible is written in Greek.

[eastsider]

Only the NT : )

[rwfromkansas]

True.....but I meant just the NT....:)

[eastsider]

I think B-Chan's point was that Petros is a Hellenization of a Semitic personal name. Cf. Jn1:42 – "... you will be called Kephas, which means Peter."

[ACAC]

This why I have a problem with the Catholic Church. They are led by many left-wing men. Their universities are run by extreme liberals. Here is a quote by conservative activist DAvid Horowitz:

"I've been on 200 college campuses in the last decade, and I can tell you that these anti-American doctrines and ideas are standard fare in our universities with very little to oppose them," Horowitz says.

Horowitz, a former 1960s radical who is now a conservative columnist, says most of the programs are taught by leftist professors who hate the United States -- and that the courses have a definite anti-American slant.

"It doesn't really matter where you are geographically or what kind of a school you're in, you're going to be fed an anti-American diet by your professors," he says. "They will teach American history as a history of racism and oppression."

The best-selling conservative author and editor says many students are seeking peace degrees at private universities. "Catholic schools are some of the worst schools, especially the ones run by Jesuits," he says. "Schools like Georgetown, of course, have been infected with the 'left-wing virus,' and it's not a pretty sight to behold."


If the Catholic Church was really the Church of Jesus. They would change this right now. Jesus would never put up with this. Also, some of the most Catholic places in the country elect some of the most pro-abortion people. Chicago and Boston are heavily Catholic and heavily pro-abortion. You will be known by your fruits.

[Bluntpoint]

"You will be known by your fruits. "

So you met my gay neighbor who became a priest.

[Gophack]

I think he meant that Peter was suppose to spread the gospel

That is your interpretation, and I respect that, but the fact remains that for 2,000 years, the first Christian Church, called the Catholic Church, believed then and still believes that Jesus Christ gave the authority on earth for St. Peter to head His church after he died and was resurrected, and left the Holy Spirit to guide the Church.

God bless.