Suffer the Children
"In the United States, over 3000 civil lawsuits have been filed against the Catholic Church."
It's a distressing reality that hardly a day goes by when a Catholic priest is not before the Courts for child-related sexual offences. Today, Father Michael Higginbottom was found guilty of the 'cruel and sadistic' abuse of a teenage boy at St Joseph's College in Upholland, Lancashire, UK. Convicted at Liverpool Crown Court of four counts, the 74-year-old faces 17 years in jail.
Two other deceased priests escaped justice. The Catholic Church paid a paltry £35,000- to settle a related case at the same institute. This is not a problem we can afford to ignore.
All this begs the question, what is the scale of abuse within the Catholic Church, and does it continue today? The first question is difficult to answer, partly because of the reluctance of the higher authorities in Rome, who hold significant power and influence, to share information. Their attitude remains secretive, uncooperative and evasive. In other words, they continue to cover up.
Yet, we are fortunate that the extent of the criminality in the Catholic Church is coming to light. Meanwhile, I'm sure this is uncomfortable for the lay faithful, who cannot ignore the scale of deprivation, which includes the loss of innocence and trust and the emotional and psychological trauma experienced by the victims.
A Royal Commission in Australia reporting on 6th February this year revealed a scale of abuse that is staggering. In the six decades since 1950, nationwide, up to 15% of priests were alleged to be involved in sexual abuse. In one order, 40% of the priests were engaged in abusing children, male and female. Across Australia, over 1,900 individual perpetrators were identified, whilst 500 remained unidentified.
And the toll continues. Between 1980 and 2015, 4,444 alleged incidents of abuse were recorded in Australia. The average age of the victim is around 11 years old.
In the United States, over 3000 civil lawsuits have been filed against the Catholic Church. In one case, the Dallas Diocese paid $30.9 million in compensation to twelve victims of a single priest. By 2009, in the United States, a total of US$2.6 billion in settlements for abuse was paid by the Catholic Church. These payments give an insight into the scale of the abuse.
It is horrific that the Catholic Church as an institution facilitated, covered up and propagated crime on such a scale. Every ordinary Catholic who donates funds or supports the Church played a role in allowing this to continue. Now, I know other organisations have similar issues.
But none of the scale of the Catholic Church. None can claim to have permitted or covered up so much child rape and indecent assault. Within the Catholic Church, child rape and abuse took place on an industrial scale.
Rome responded with indifference and concealment in the face of this willful criminality. Offending priests were moved on to spread their depravity to new pastures. In the process, the Catholic Church made the situation worse. Only when the civil lawsuits started hitting the Church's bottom line, its income—did things begin to change.
Yet, change is slow. The Catholic Church sought to distance itself from offending priests. Asserting it could not be held responsible for their actions. Moreover, it failed to share information on abuse and obstructed investigations. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, in 2014, held that the Catholic Church had failed to protect children. It noted that the Church appeared to be more concerned about image.
At the start of this piece, my second question is whether abuse continues today. Given the predatory nature of pedophiles, the opportunity that religion gives to get close to children, plus the failure of Churches to be transparent, I'm confident it does go on. The reluctance of the Catholic Church to address this issue provides cover for pedophiles and abusers. So, it's a resounding yes! I do not doubt that the abuse continues behind the doors of various religious orders.
Even today, the Catholic Church appears focused on protecting its reputation rather than addressing the evil at its core. Given its record of cover-up, obstruction and denial, it is hard to think of a more despicable institution in the modern world.
Every Catholic should hang their head in shame. The next thing they should do is stop funding this evil enterprise. Keep your faith, but don't be a party to the funding of child abuse. Then, the bosses in Rome will take note and take action.
April 2017
Two other deceased priests escaped justice. The Catholic Church paid a paltry £35,000- to settle a related case at the same institute. This is not a problem we can afford to ignore.
All this begs the question, what is the scale of abuse within the Catholic Church, and does it continue today? The first question is difficult to answer, partly because of the reluctance of the higher authorities in Rome, who hold significant power and influence, to share information. Their attitude remains secretive, uncooperative and evasive. In other words, they continue to cover up.
Yet, we are fortunate that the extent of the criminality in the Catholic Church is coming to light. Meanwhile, I'm sure this is uncomfortable for the lay faithful, who cannot ignore the scale of deprivation, which includes the loss of innocence and trust and the emotional and psychological trauma experienced by the victims.
A Royal Commission in Australia reporting on 6th February this year revealed a scale of abuse that is staggering. In the six decades since 1950, nationwide, up to 15% of priests were alleged to be involved in sexual abuse. In one order, 40% of the priests were engaged in abusing children, male and female. Across Australia, over 1,900 individual perpetrators were identified, whilst 500 remained unidentified.
And the toll continues. Between 1980 and 2015, 4,444 alleged incidents of abuse were recorded in Australia. The average age of the victim is around 11 years old.
In the United States, over 3000 civil lawsuits have been filed against the Catholic Church. In one case, the Dallas Diocese paid $30.9 million in compensation to twelve victims of a single priest. By 2009, in the United States, a total of US$2.6 billion in settlements for abuse was paid by the Catholic Church. These payments give an insight into the scale of the abuse.
It is horrific that the Catholic Church as an institution facilitated, covered up and propagated crime on such a scale. Every ordinary Catholic who donates funds or supports the Church played a role in allowing this to continue. Now, I know other organisations have similar issues.
But none of the scale of the Catholic Church. None can claim to have permitted or covered up so much child rape and indecent assault. Within the Catholic Church, child rape and abuse took place on an industrial scale.
Rome responded with indifference and concealment in the face of this willful criminality. Offending priests were moved on to spread their depravity to new pastures. In the process, the Catholic Church made the situation worse. Only when the civil lawsuits started hitting the Church's bottom line, its income—did things begin to change.
Yet, change is slow. The Catholic Church sought to distance itself from offending priests. Asserting it could not be held responsible for their actions. Moreover, it failed to share information on abuse and obstructed investigations. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, in 2014, held that the Catholic Church had failed to protect children. It noted that the Church appeared to be more concerned about image.
At the start of this piece, my second question is whether abuse continues today. Given the predatory nature of pedophiles, the opportunity that religion gives to get close to children, plus the failure of Churches to be transparent, I'm confident it does go on. The reluctance of the Catholic Church to address this issue provides cover for pedophiles and abusers. So, it's a resounding yes! I do not doubt that the abuse continues behind the doors of various religious orders.
Even today, the Catholic Church appears focused on protecting its reputation rather than addressing the evil at its core. Given its record of cover-up, obstruction and denial, it is hard to think of a more despicable institution in the modern world.
Every Catholic should hang their head in shame. The next thing they should do is stop funding this evil enterprise. Keep your faith, but don't be a party to the funding of child abuse. Then, the bosses in Rome will take note and take action.
April 2017
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