Michelle Steiner
14 years ago
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/05/17/national/main20063795.shtml
Study: Homosexuality, celibacy didn't cause abuse
May 17, 2011
Men not equipped to withstand 1960s social upheaval, which was time
of increase in sexual deviancy in society, say authors
(AP)
WASHINGTON Researchers commissioned by the nation's Roman Catholic
bishops to analyze patterns of clergy sex abuse over decades have concluded
that homosexuality, celibacy and an all-male priesthood did not cause the
scandal.
The report from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice said the majority
of molestation cases involved priests who were ordained in the 1940s and
1950s, at a time when seminaries did not properly train them to live a
celibate life. These men were not equipped to withstand the social upheaval
of the 1960s, which was a time of an increase in sexual deviancy and crime
in society at large, the authors said.
The study is the last of three reports the bishops commissioned in 2002, as
part of child protection reforms adopted at the height of the abuse crisis.
The goal of this latest report was to help identify patterns of abuse and
how the church responded to the problem in the hope of better protecting
children. The report is to be released Wednesday by the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops.
Researchers reviewed abuse allegations from more than 10,000 people against
thousands of priests since the 1950s.
The report says the abuse problem peaked in the 1970s, then began declining
sharply, at a time when there were no changes in the celibacy mandate and
only men were ordained. Therefore, these were not factors in the crisis,
researchers said. The majority of known victims were boys, prompting many
in the church to say that gay priests were to blame. The John Jay
researchers rejected that argument, saying the offenders chose boys
because clergy had greater access to them.
According to the report, only a tiny percentage of accused priests less
than 5 percent could be technically defined as pedophiles. The authors of
the study define pedophile as an adult with an intense sexual attraction to
prepubescent children.
Victim advocates have said that the study cannot be trusted since the raw
data was provided by the bishops. A spokeswoman for the bishops' conference
insisted the bishops fully cooperated with the study, which was partly
funded with a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Study: Homosexuality, celibacy didn't cause abuse
May 17, 2011
Men not equipped to withstand 1960s social upheaval, which was time
of increase in sexual deviancy in society, say authors
(AP)
WASHINGTON Researchers commissioned by the nation's Roman Catholic
bishops to analyze patterns of clergy sex abuse over decades have concluded
that homosexuality, celibacy and an all-male priesthood did not cause the
scandal.
The report from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice said the majority
of molestation cases involved priests who were ordained in the 1940s and
1950s, at a time when seminaries did not properly train them to live a
celibate life. These men were not equipped to withstand the social upheaval
of the 1960s, which was a time of an increase in sexual deviancy and crime
in society at large, the authors said.
The study is the last of three reports the bishops commissioned in 2002, as
part of child protection reforms adopted at the height of the abuse crisis.
The goal of this latest report was to help identify patterns of abuse and
how the church responded to the problem in the hope of better protecting
children. The report is to be released Wednesday by the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops.
Researchers reviewed abuse allegations from more than 10,000 people against
thousands of priests since the 1950s.
The report says the abuse problem peaked in the 1970s, then began declining
sharply, at a time when there were no changes in the celibacy mandate and
only men were ordained. Therefore, these were not factors in the crisis,
researchers said. The majority of known victims were boys, prompting many
in the church to say that gay priests were to blame. The John Jay
researchers rejected that argument, saying the offenders chose boys
because clergy had greater access to them.
According to the report, only a tiny percentage of accused priests less
than 5 percent could be technically defined as pedophiles. The authors of
the study define pedophile as an adult with an intense sexual attraction to
prepubescent children.
Victim advocates have said that the study cannot be trusted since the raw
data was provided by the bishops. A spokeswoman for the bishops' conference
insisted the bishops fully cooperated with the study, which was partly
funded with a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice.
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