Pedofile or pederast? There is a difference.
There is a big difference between gossiping and being brave enough to come forward with the truth. The light of truth will always give us a reason to strengthen our resolve and adhere more closely to God.
One of the blessings of having a faithful priest or pastor to aid you in your walk with Christ, is his discretion when it comes to personal matters and his belief that God will love you and help you at all times. Often this close interaction and discussion of our lives and our faith, leads us to a greater understanding of God's love. I don't believe you can characterize all priests or pastors' dealings with the parishoners as being cloaked in secrecy or darkness.
Watch out, my first post on this thread was along this same line and it was deleted along with 2 others talking about the gay priests. But then again I had some Bustard on my behind who obviously thought I shouldn't voice an opinion and hit the cry button.Hope you have better luck.