Pamela Dixon
Human Sexuality
April 26, 2016
Susan CadWell Instructor
The response of the Vatican during the child abuse allegations was that the UN was trying to interfere with church teachings on the dignity of human persons and in the exercise of religious freedom. At a public session the Vatican said it had little jurisdiction to sanction pedophile priests, but conceded more needed to be done. The Vatican’s former sex crimes prosecutor Monsignor Charles Scicluna said the Holy See gets it and that certain things need to be done differently. Due to a code of silence imposed on all members of the clergy under the penalty of excommunication, cases of child sexual abuse have hardly ever been reported to the law enforcement authorities in the countries where such crimes occurred. The Holy See denies allegations of a Vatican cover up and says it has set clear guidelines to protect children from predator priests ( Boston catholic, 2015). The United Nations committee slammed the Vatican’s handling of child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church and accused the church of protecting itself rather than the victim’s. The report from the United Nations also accuse the Vatican of transferring child sexual abusers from one parish to another in an attempt to cover up crimes, placing children at high risk for abuse. Also the Holy See has consistently placed the preservation of the reputation of the church and the protection of the perpetrators above children’s best interest. Closed door proceedings have allowed a majority of abusers to avoid criminal proceedings. A code of silence within the clergy ensures that many cases of child sexual abuse are not reported to law enforcement ( Boston Catholic, 2015). The Vatican acknowledged that hundreds of priests left priesthood because of accusations that they had sexually abused children. Since taking the helm of the Roman Catholic Church in March Pope Francis has told the Senior Vatican official to carry out due proceedings against the guilty in sexual abuse cases. The Vatican was also ordered to make it mandatory to report all cases of suspected child abuse to law enforcement. Celibacy has been the focus with priests. Many Catholics have felt alienated by the Church’s conservative position on priestly celibacy for years, and some are openly calling for the newly appointed Pope Francis to repeal the celibacy rule as official doctrine. The Catholic Church has required Chasity for anyone entering the ministry for centuries, and is not alone in promoting sexual abstinence. Celibacy has a long history in the Buddhist monastic tradition, and many Hindu monks and nuns also take vows of abstinence. Chief among the many arguments for the priestly celibacy rule is the need to renounce the complications of worldly desires like sex in order to focus on spiritual development. I feel like the celibacy rule is a bad idea with painful consequences. It’s unnatural to force a person to be celibate. Priesthood attracts child molesters because of its unnatural structure that, by eliminating healthy sexuality, encourages perversion and also covers it up. Priests should be allowed to marry. Many priests have left priesthood to marry. Marriage should not bar them from their vocation and they should be married before they are ordained ( Boston Catholic, 2015). Members of religious groups can mandate psychological examinations prior to ordaining priests into ministry. This will create a proactive solution so that minors are not being sexually abused, and enduring mental turmoil throughout their life. Priests have a huge impact not only on the community but also on the children of the community. When priests sexually abuse a child he implants mentally in the child that the sexual favors are appropriate. Being a superior in ministry is honorable; to mishandle that is betrayal not only to the congregation but most of all the almighty power. The scriptures that are being recited emphasize morals, values and principles. In my opinion those priests that betray the honor are disgusting and contradicts the value and meaning of their position. 5 ideas that members of religious groups can do to help prevent such occurrences are 1. Having psychological exams, 2. Having a criminal background check, 3. Having IP history look-ups on their computers, 4. Criminal prosecution if caught, 5. Full staff accountability at all times.

References 1. BostonCatholic.org. (2015, August).Publication with Respect to Archdiocesan clergy accused of sexual abuse of a child. Retrieved from http://www.bostoncatholic.org/publication.aspx.