statistically, are there more child molestor catholic priests than in the over all popualtion. why?

Question

why do priests and catholics like to molest children? do you think that catholics should be placed on an fbi watch list so that the people in their lives can be routinely questioned, especially the children who routinely see these people and have no choice. shouldn't the children come first?

Answer 1

I am a Catholic and I have never molested a child, I also am a foster carer. Look into other Churches and careers and you will find the percentage rate is much higher. You must hate Catholics to accuse us of molesting children

May God forgive you for the accusation

Answer 2

I am a Roman Catholic. I grew up Catholic, and attended Catholic schools. I was an altar boy for several different priests. Yet nothing at all ever happened to me, nor to millions of other Catholic kids. Yes, there is currently, a priest scandal, but religious leaders of many, many other denominations have been accused of wrongdoing, as well. What I'm saying is that it's not just a Catholic problem. And at least in my area, the main group of molesters is, by far, youth sports coaches. Should we put all Little League coaches on some kind of watch list, too? The percentage of Catholic abuse cases is, statistically speaking, actually quite small, despite all the media hype.

Answer 3

I have no statistical back up for this...it is my opinion only.

Most of the priests who have molested children...mostly boys...are from a generation who are now in their 50s and older. They are, almost exclusively, homosexual. They were very young and gay at a time when there was no understanding or acceptance of their sexuality. So the Church might have been a good place for them to feel as though they had a 'place' in society. Through their conflicted feelings and their vow of celibacy, they became confused and frustrated. And may have acted upon their urges with innocent young boys...an easy target.

Please don't misunderstand...I am in NO WAY saying that all homosexual men are child molestors. Nor am I condoning or excusing the behaviour. I am only explaining how I see the large number of priests who have molested children.

Answer 4

It is ludicrous to say that "Catholics like to molest chiIdren", it makes your question sound more like a rant.

I can't speak to the numbers, but I have some thoughts. I believe that the issue of priests molesting children had been swept under the rug for years and years, leaving many voiceless victims -- children! -- in its wake. I believe some cover-ups still exist.

However, I believe that child abuse by clergy is seriously declining. First of all, the cases being brought forth are from years and years ago. They almost always involve boy children. It is a very recent dvelopment that victims of sexual crimes could come forth without enduring social stigma (and worse), particularly so for boys. Almost the same can be said for "gays coming out of closets". In the more distant past, I can imagine young Catholic men who felt no attraction to girls thinking that this must be a call to the celibacy of priesthood, when in fact, it was often just masking the unacceptable possibility of homosexuality. I can see how the guilty priests were in some ways, victims of their times.

But most of these social considerations are no longer prevalent, and I think there is very little child molestation by priests going on today. Because of the disgrace and pressure, seminaries, as desperate for new priests as they are, are doing their very utmost in screening out homosexuals, active or not, who are trying to find a safe niche in priesthood.

For what it is worth, I am sure most of the guilty priests were tormented by their sins in their lifetime far more than most, simply because they are priests and do know better.

To answer the rest of your questions, YES! Of course the children must be protected! I don't think the FBI will be necessary to keep tabs on the clergy, because I think public attention has been sufficiently heightened on that population. But children continue to be as vulnerable as ever to the rest of the sexual predators, most of whom appear to us to be public-spirited and benifiicent, or at the very least, harmless.

Answer 5

Pedophilia is a disease. It is more prevalent outside the Church since more people are living outside the Church. Statistically there is 2 pedophiles working at each USA public schools. However, the Government covers this up and has limited liability to 180 days (1/2 year) to report this and a maximum payment of $50,000.00 per incident.

Certainly, the child molestation cases are a stain on the Church ... but it is a SMALL reflection of the human condition. I hope that the sins of the Church can one day lead to the cure for all crimes of this nature against childreen.

If you need to contact the Catholic Church about an incident, I have a web site ... please e-mail me if this will help you be more at peace.

Answer 6

I pulled down the publicly available data about two years ago and did an analysis and I came out at a rate of abusers of about 1/6th the rate in the general population, although we do not have the best population data either and the public data certainly understates the problem. I would feel more comfortable at a 1/3rd to 1/2 the rate. The problem certainly isn't restricted to Catholicism and quite a few Protestant denominations have quite high rates. Pedophiles are attracted to any job that puts them in contact with children and they are experts at manipulating organizations and groups to keep them in that role. Attempts at prosecution are rare, unfortunately and successful ones are even rarer.

The largest issues are in the public schools and in churches that lack any form of managerial oversight. Small independent churches are ideal for abusers to set up as evangelists because what oversight does exist in episcopal churches can be circumvented entirely in independent groups.

Answer 7

Nobody knows how many adults in general sexually abuse youth and adults. A figure of 2% is often mentioned. However this is really just a guess.

Philip Jenkins, is a professor of history and religious studies at Penn State University, and has written a book on the topic. He estimates that 2% of priests sexually abuse youth and children.

Richard Sipe is a psychotherapist and former priest, who has studied celibacy and sexuality in the priesthood for four decades. He has authored three books on the topic. By extrapolating from his 25 years of interviews of 1,500 priests and others, he estimates that 6% of priests abuse. Of these, 4% abuse teens, aged 13 to 17; 2% abuse pre-pubertal children.

Answer 8

This is not the truth.

Statistically the number of child molesting Priests is FEWER than that of the general population.

Statistically, PARENTS are the most likely molestor, followed by teachers and coaches.

Answer 9

In 2001, clinical child psychologist Wade F. Horn reported on the work of researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health. The researchers found that nearly 20 percent of low-income women, recruited through family planning, obstetrical or gynecological clinics, had experienced child sexual abuse.

Horn summarized the researchers’ findings on poor women as follows: “Family friends and acquaintances compose the largest group of perpetrators (28 percent), followed by such relatives as uncles and cousins (18 percent), stepfathers (12 percent), male siblings (10 percent), biological fathers (10 percent), boyfriends of the child’s mother (9 percent), grandfathers and stepgrandfathers (7 percent), and strangers (4 percent).”

In New York City alone, at least one child is sexually abused by a school employee every day.

All of the accused admitted sexual abuse of a student, but none of the abusers was reported to the authorities, and only 1 percent lost their license to teach.

In the spring of 2002, when the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church was receiving unprecedented attention, the Christian Science Monitor reported on the results of national surveys by Christian Ministry Resources. The conclusion: “Despite headlines focusing on the priest pedophile problem in the Roman Catholic Church, most American churches being hit with child sexual-abuse allegations are Protestant, and most of the alleged abusers are not clergy or staff, but church volunteers.”

Answer 10

There isn't, it is propaganda. You tell me how many there are out of 400,000 priests in the world?
How many child molestors are atheists? Someone should do a survey to find out, but you can bet your bottom dollar they never will, because there is no anti-Christian capital to be had from it.