Pope Francis reassures the faithful: Only 2 percent of Catholic clergy are pedophiles

[DonViejo]

Source: Agence France-Presse

By Agence France-Presse
Sunday, July 13, 2014 11:14 EDT

Pope Francis promised “solutions” to the issue of priestly celibacy in an interview on Sunday that raised the possibility the Catholic Church could eventually lift the interdiction on married priests.

Speaking to Italy’s La Repubblica daily, Francis also condemned child sex abuse as a “leprosy” in the Church and cited his aides as saying that “the level of paedophilia in the Church is at two percent”.

“That two percent includes priests and even bishops and cardinals,” he said.

Asked whether priests might one day be allowed to marry, Francis pointed out that celibacy was instituted “900 years after Our Lord’s death” and that clerics can marry in some Eastern Churches under Vatican tutelage.

“There definitely is a problem but it is not a major one. This needs time but there are solutions and I will find them,” Francis said, without giving further details.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/07/13/pope-francis-reassures-the-faithful-only-2-percent-of-catholic-clergy-are-pedophiles/

[SummerSnow]

1. Oh, only 2% that's all? Then there's no need to worry.

What the fu-la-la? Do they have a pedophile clergy census or something? No sarcasm

[socialist_n_TN]

13. Yep. My first thought was, "Whew, that's all huh?.......

That's a relief! "

I wonder how many kids that 2% comes into contact with?

[DeadLetterOffice]

42. In fairness...

... internationally the pedophilia rate among men is estimated somewhere between 3% and 29%, so if (big if) Frances is right about the 2% in the priesthood, then it's a lower rate than the general male population. (Finkelhor, D. 1994. The international epidemiology of child sexual abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 18: 409-417)

That said -- any % is too damn much. And the Church's role in protecting their pedophile priests was and remains sickening.

[graegoyle]

60. Clergy have confessions.

They have a pretty good idea who is raping in Jesus' name and who is just "tempted" and has not yet acted.

[hlthe2b]

2. Oh, my.

That's some verbiage that is going to haunt him....

[Baitball Blogger]

17. +1

[bravenak]

3. Is this a joke?nt

[DonViejo]

6. No. Apparently it's a real story...

My question is, "how does he know how many pedophiles there are in the Church?" Did he send out a questionnaire?

[Plucketeer]

19. Yeah - and just how long

have they HAD this figure of 2%??? How is this 2% kept in check..... IF it's kept in check???

[lunatica]

21. In all fairness the Vatican has all the information already

The way the past Popes dealt with the problem was to move the pedophile priests to another location. This then gave the priests access to an ever renewing batch of unsuspecting children and their parents. The Vatican knows exactly what percentage of their priests, Cardinals and Archbishops are pedophiles. It has the files and records on all of them.

Pedophiles outside the priesthood can only dream of such an opportunity coming up whenever someone accuses them of the crime.

If it is truly 2% that's a mighty prolific 2%, as we know, because that's what happens when you enable pedophiles. Their sex drive doesn't diminish or go away when they're let loose on children, even after getting caught.

I only hope Pope Francis isn't lying. It is terrible that all priests are being smeared by association. It's also important to cull the pedophiles right out of the priesthood if they ever want anyone to trust any priest again.

[DonViejo]

29. I doubt that...

The Vatican knows exactly what percentage of their priests, Cardinals and Archbishops are pedophiles. It has the files and records on all of them.

That assumes every pedophile has been reported, that's just not possible...yet.

[lunatica]

34. OK let me put it this way

The Vatican has files on all their known pedophiles. I'm sure some haven't been accused yet by their victims or some that haven't come to the attention of the Vatican yet or that there are some future pedophiles in every batch of newly ordain priests.

In what walk of life doesn't that apply to?

Whether it comes from Pope Francis or some other Pope I truly hope they start dealing with pedophilia as a punishable crime. When they do that they won't be committing the added crime of enabling the rape of thousands of children. There should also be some form of severe punishment for those who just moved priests to different locations.

I'm not a religious person nor am I certain what I believe in, but others are and this is traumatizing to them They are the reason I have hope that the criminals will be caught and punished.

[bravenak]

30. There is no way he can 'know'.

And if they know, why not get it down to 0% before they start congradulating themselves? I find this creepy. Two percent? I'm stunned at the lack of awareness surrounding this issue.

[awoke_in_2003]

33. The 2% is just the ones they know about...

and moved to other parishes to try to keep it covered up.

[Bette R. Daize]

56. Naw, the 2% he is referring to are just the scumbags that actually got CAUGHT.

[mountain grammy]

4. Oh wow "definitely is a problem but it is not a major one" ?????

Come on, Pope Frank, you're blowing this big time.

[DCBob]

48. I believe he was refering to the problem of celibacy.

It would good to read the article before posting.

[ladjf]

5. That's one out of fifty. That didn't prove the point that he hoped it would. nt

[perdita9]

7. This number means nothing to a child who's being abused

I don't know who told the church to use this argument, but it's insulting to anyone who's been raped by a church official

[JNelson6563]

10. Yes, this is THE most important point.

Thank you for making it.

Julie

[Bluenorthwest]

8. If he's that certain of the numbers, why are they not routing those criminals out at once?

Francis is saying they know who all of them are, exactly how many as well, but he's leaving those rapists in power. The Bishops, the Cardinals, why are they still there?
His claim that they know such specific information makes his lack of action doubly disturbing. If he's just making that 2% figure up, then he's a perniciously dishonest man. Either way this makes him sound creepier and more culpable than ever.

[DeadLetterOffice]

43. +1

[Bryce Butler]

9. I call BS...

Where did he come up with that number? Did he take a poll? This crisis has taken place in every corner of the Catholic Church. Pedophiles look for careers where than can get close to children and the Catholic Church is packed with them. 2% BS

[Journeyman]

11. Unless one of them's fiddling you, in which case it's 100% . . .

[davidthegnome]

12. Hmm...

Not a major problem? You know, Mr. Pope, if 2% of Americans suddenly decided to just randomly start selecting people to shoot... if 2% of all Walmart workers decided to blow up the Walmarts they work in... if 2% of all school children decided they were going to cook their teachers for breakfast...

Well, that 2%, it can actually be a pretty big number, it can actually be a pretty major, pretty huge problem. Now, I don't know, Mr. Holy Man, whether or not your facts are really accurate, or based on anything more than guessing... or maybe even a questionnaire of the clergy.. but, 2%? Still a pretty big number. Still a number that could do all kinds of really bad things.

The marriage issue is a somewhat different kettle of fish. When I was a young boy, I thought about joining the Priesthood, there were things I liked about it - like the pretty dresses you guys get to wear, the candles, incense, pretty bells and the singing. I love, to this day, the sound of church bells ringing, though I don't hear them terribly often anymore. I thought about the vow of poverty - no big deal for me, I've lived in poverty before. I thought about the sermons, about comforting the suffering, I thought about all of the good things Jesus said we should do. I also liked the idea of people calling me Father, which is something I'm sure Freud would have had a field day with.

What ultimately convinced me not to join the priesthood were a few simple things. The Catholic church's condemnation of homosexuals, the Catholic church's demonization of women (going back many centuries) the fact that, there are Catholic saints that were bloody handed butchers, Inquisitors, crusaders and so on. Finally though... what really did me in was the idea that I could never have sex. Well, maybe I could, but I'd have to lie about it, hide it, maybe masturbate in a closet or something.

Human beings are sexual creatures, Mr. Pope. It's a part of our nature - and if there is such a thing as god (agnosticism, alas, the final nail in the coffin of my clerical ambitions) then God would not have made us such if God did not intend us to express, enjoy, and even thrive upon and within that part of our nature. Otherwise, God would have to be kind of a huge asshole - and I simply refuse to believe that about any theoretical higher being, no matter what the Priests or pastors say.

Sir... you are making an even bigger mess out of an already catastrophic one. When you downplay this issue, you insult the children and families who have suffered. You make mockery, make light of their suffering - even as you are a representative from the church which perpetuated it, attempted to cover it up, and ultimately buy it's way out of a global PR nightmare.

I suffered abuse as a boy. Without going into detail about the whats and hows and such... it was not a Priest that was guilty in my case. When I went to see a DA's assistant, she informed me quite seriously that, "This is not an offense against YOU. It is an offense against the state." You know, very few things in my life have ever made me anywhere near as angry or as upset as that comment did, and still does.

I had some hope for you, Mr. Holy Man... but I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that you're something of an idiot. I guess I can't really blame you, if I had spent so many years sexually frustrated, as part of a bigoted, ignorant organization of self proclaimed holy men... well, I'd be an idiot too.

Enough is enough. You are supposed to be representative of Christ, if you can't act like one, maybe someone else needs to do your job.

[classof56]

20. Your courage is greatly to be admired, and I thank you for sharing.

I had hoped for better things from Pope Francis, and I agree with you. As an evangelical minister of mine used to say, Christians above all should live with love and in a Christlike manner. Sorry to see Pope Francis fall so short of the goal.

Blessings.

[mahannah]

37. Thanks.Very well stated.

[Gore1FL]

14. It makes me wonder what they were expecting if 2% does not equal a "major" problem.

It also makes me wonder what other hidden scandals they could have that are so hideous that the "Now with 2% predators" issue seems minor to them in comparison.

[Archae]

15. He still won't defrock Finn...

Who covered up a serial abuser.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2014/7/12/94138/5157/Front_Page/Vatican_Defrocks_A_Bishop_Over_Sexual_Abuse_But_Not_Finn_

[Android3.14]

16. There's something like 400,000 priests

Thank goodness only 8,000 rape children.

[truthisfreedom]

18. What a relief. Here I was worried it was up to 2.2%.

Gosh, I can sleep now. Finally.

[avebury]

22. Even 2% is too many. nt

[Cartoonist]

23. Can I reduce my tithe by 2%

Rhetorical question, as I left the church long ago.

[SamKnause]

24. Is the Catholic Church

and the Pope inferring that if marriage was allowed, that paedophillia in the Catholic Church would magically disappear ???

I fail to see the correlation.

If celibacy was the issue, wouldn't this mean that the cleric would be having affairs with women ???

Are they implying that people who practice celibacy turn to paedophillia ???

[valerief]

51. I think traditionally it's been pedophiles have turned to the clergy. nt

[defacto7]

59. If true,

That would say a lot about the holiness of the church and the will of God.

[valerief]

65. Yep.

[onehandle]

25. I accuse the Pope of being open about the problem and doing something about it!

Wait... That's not a bad thing.

But some people would rather religion disband, than progress...

[whatthehey]

69. doing something?

What was that exactly? Why are not 2% of priests defrocked today? Turned over to law enforcement with open access to all files? Bishops who moved them at the very least reprimanded severely, and also defrocked and turned over to the cops if serial offenders or knowingly complicit?

That would be doing something, and only seems extreme by comparison to what he's actually doing. It is what would be demanded, under force of law, of any other international conglomerate that knew 2% of its staff were buggering kids. What would be morally expected after that is a full overhaul of hiring practices, internal policies, required training for every single person, a cost-free anonymous complaint line with real enforcement teeth behind it in the organization and a very very strict internal process audit.

ANY company admitting this kind of penetration into their ranks of known child molestors protected by superiors would do AT LEAST that, and probably follow up with large donations to associated causes, nolo contendere legal stance against abuse claims, and vigorous internal housecleaning if they wanted to keep a single customer.

What's Pope Photo-Op done to keep the tithes rolling in? Fuck all, because he knows the laity, called sheep for an astonishingly good reason, will continue to bankroll his NAMBLA clubs anyway.

[liberalmuse]

26. Oh good!

Statistically speaking, that means there are close to 10,000 pedophiles with easy access to children and holding positions of authority (and trust) within the Catholic church. Considering the average pedophile can have up to a dozen victims, and some many more, this could mean that as many as 120,000 children are currently being sexually molested by Catholic clergy. That doesn't count the tens of thousands of victims who have already been molested. I feel better now. Thank you for easing my mind, Mr. Pope.

[DeadLetterOffice]

45. "Hardcore" pedophiles

are thought to abuse up to 150 children in their lifetime. (http://www.bravehearts.org.au/files/Facts%20and%20Stats_updated141212.pdf)

[liberalmuse]

57. Oh my god.

I thought I was exaggerating because I suck at math, but apparently not. Statistics mean nothing if you're a victim of sexual abuse. 2% is too damn much, and in no way diminishes this heinous crime.

[smirkymonkey]

70. Scary.

I can't believe he thinks that because it's only a handful that it is somehow ok. Talk about clueless.

[Kath1]

27. That is "reassuring?"

I appreciate him addressing the issue but that is not reassuring!

[Solly Mack]

28. That's like the (awful) punchline to a really bad joke.

[MannyGoldstein]

31. This is an irresponsible headline, I think

Not the OP's fault: it comes from the source.

From what I can gather, the Pope mentioned the 2% figure, then said he's going to deal with them and with the people who cover up their actions. He didn't say anything like "I want to reassure you..."

[jmowreader]

32. One chance in fifty is still a hell of a lot of priests, considering how many there are

Ending priestly celibacy would end two of the biggest crises facing the Vatican: the pedophile surplus and the priest shortage.

[Arkana]

35. Oh, well, I guess that makes it ok then.

My mother has a friend whose son was molested by their parish priest. When they tried to sue, the Church buried them in lawyers and transferred the priest.

The Catholic Church can go straight to hell for the horror they have allowed those in power to inflict on children.

[PatrickforO]

36. Seems to me we are taking the Pope's words a bit out of context.

Based on the quotes above, it seems to me that when Francis said, "There definitely is a problem but it is not a major one," HE WAS ADDRESSING THE ISSUE OF CELEBACY AND MARRIAGE OF PRIESTS, not pedophilia among the priests.

Look at what he said about the pedophilia: "It is a leprosy in the church."

Again, it seems to me that the appropriate follow-up question by Agence France-Presse would have been: "If the incidence of pedophilia is 2%, and the Church has about 45,000 priests at this time, this means there are around 900 pedophiles still at large. What is your specific plan for identifying and removing these pedophiles from priesthood roles?"

See, looks like Agence France-Presse was going for ratings instead of truth. They'd rather allow people to get the mistaken impression that the Pope doesn't think these pedophiles are a big deal that needs to be taken care of ASAP because controversy increases ratings. Everyone knows that!

[PatrickforO]

39. Oh oh. I have to correct my math above. In 2008 there were 409,166 priests, not 45,000.

So, 409,166 X .02 = 8,183 priests who are thought to be pedophiles. That's a far bigger problem than the 900 I mistakenly cite above. Though, in truth ONE is too many.

I still do stand by the rest of the text in my posting above. I think the French press was going more for ratings than truth. That said, with 8,183 ticking time bombs, the Pope better get on this problem right away.

[treestar]

66. True and I don't see anywhere where he was reassuring that it is only 2%

That he put it in that way.

[toby jo]

38. I'm chuckling over "clerics can marry … under Vatican tutelage.'

omg

That one is so big don't know where to begin.

Maybe when the vat gets done with them they can take some tutelage from the nuns….

Always and Everybody is in some form "UNDER" them.

[CanonRay]

40. 2% they know about

time how many they don't know about and don't want to know about. Even 2% is a helluva lot, IMHO

[happyslug]

44. 2% is the average for ALL men.

That is the studies, it keeps coming back as the most accurate number among all males. Thus Catholic Priests are no worse or better then men as a general rule.

[CanonRay]

49. I did not know that

Filed under "Not Fun Facts".

[skepticscott]

54. Assuming the pope isn't lying

(Gee, why would he do that?), this is just an "Everyone is doing it" argument to excuse despicable behavior. And I'll wager that most of the general population that's doing it don't have superiors who are protecting and abetting them in getting access to more victims, and aren't declaring that their moral authority comes from god, and can't be questioned.

[happyslug]

63. You have NOT done much CYS work have you?

This happens all the time in the Public Schools system. You do not hear of it for when the victims come out, the school protects the abusers almost and at time better then the Catholic Church. Worse, when these do hit the court system, criminal charges tend to be minimal, just like in the Catholic Church for the victims either wait to long so any applicable Criminal statute of Limitations kicks in OR it becomes a he says, she says argument and such evidence is NOT beyond a Reasonable Doubt thus the Criminal Charge is dismissed.

In any Civil Litigation, the Catholic Church has a huge disadvantage, it has assets and can NOT claim Sovereign Immunity. Public Schools system yell Sovereign Immunity all the time. Sovereign Immunity is the concept that you can NOT sue the State for the State can do not wrong. You can sue the agents of the States or their sub-parts, but not the States or their sub parts themselves. Thus a victim can sue the teacher that molest them, they principal that covered it up, but NOT the school itself. When the Catholic Church is involved, the victim can sue the molester, the principal, the Parish Priest and the Bishop BUT ALSO THE DIOCESE ITSELF. It is the Diocese that has the assets to pay off a judgement, not the other defendants. The problem with Public Schools is the Public School System is exempt from the Judgment, you only get a judgement against the Victim, the School Principal, the members of the School Board, but NOT the School District itself. Since only the School District has the money to pay a judgement, Lawyers do not take these cases. Lawyers want to be paid, they get paid out of the Judgement when it is paid. The people defendants do NOT have the assets to pay the judgement so you have to look at the assets of the School, and when you deal with public schools, those assets are off limits.

Thus you do not hear of public schools being sued, for even if it can be proved that the victim was molested by a teacher and the School covered it up, the school itself will NOT have to pay for the harm done. Lawyers do NOT sue for damages against people who can never pay it for lawyers want paid.

Now, more recently the Boy Scouts have had similar problems and it is slowly coming out how much they covered up such incidents. The Boy Scouts have managed to avoid most litigation for the cover-ups have been at the local level only, or at least what has been revealed. The national Boy Scouts group is to coordinate local boy scout troops, but each troop is viewed as independent, Thus the National Boy Scout Troops can claim it is a different organization then the troop that employed a scout master who molested the boys in his troop. Thus such incidents have occurred in the Boy Scouts, but no where near the publicity of the Catholic Church, for the Catholic Church can PAY for the crimes of its priests, these other groups avoid paying for their local leaders crime by pointing out each troop is a separate and independent organization and each such organization does NOT have the assets to pay off the victims.

Just pointing out WHY you hear about the Catholic Church problems with these pedophiles and not other groups. The reason is simple, the Catholic Church can PAY for its Priests errors, but the other groups prefer to dissolve then fight such a lawsuit.

Now, let me say this. The Catholic Church has at least made an effort to address this problem, unlike other groups that have ignored them. Now, the Catholic Church did this in response to the various lawsuits they have lost but they have done something. Now most of what the Catholic Church has done will only be seen in 10-20 years, when the present series of lawsuits finally run they course AND the new rules reduce the number of such incidents (The Bishops have adopted a strict rule on removing priest who have been accused, even if there is no other evidence then one person's accusations). What the Bishops have done has been criticized by SNAP as not enough, but it is more then what other groups that deal with young people have done.

[GeorgeGist]

41. Do they check a box?

[happyslug]

46. Before we go one, 2% is the average for all males.

Now that includes Male Homosexuals AND men who call themselves Heterosexual, but also like 12 to 14 year old males. Thus you have Homosexuals who both want such sex to be legal, and Homosexuals who want to keep it illegal.

Under the Common Law and the law in most States and Countries prior to about 1900, the age of consent was 12, thus most pedophiles want to return to that age, for then sex with 12 year olds would be legal.

As to the Catholic Church, in a review of all church records since 1952, shows just 1 under the age of 11. Then the numbers jump and peaks at 13 and 13, then the numbers decline. This is also the pattern for such illegal sex among the general population.

This is NOT common Knowledge for Children and Youth hearings tend to be private and NOT open to the Public. Yes, and criminal cases are public trials, but most cases never go to trial.

My point is 2% is about normal, we may not like it, but it is what can expected.

I use to do Children and Youth, I did NOT do the criminal part of such cases, but I did do civil litigation and you end up dealing with the people who do these actions. Thus 2% sounds about right, for it is about what is the norm for men as a whole.

[DCBob]

47. That title is misleading... Pope Francis didnt use the word "only".

Here is what he said according to the article..

Speaking to Italy’s La Repubblica daily, Francis also condemned child sex abuse as a “leprosy” in the Church and cited his aides as saying that “the level of paedophilia in the Church is at two percent”.

That's a fair statement.

[valerief]

50. 2% my ass. nt

[Stuart G]

52. Truly the dumbest, stupidest, thing out of a world leader since>>>>>>>>>>>>>>?????

"I am not a crook"...

only one in fifty are a danger to your children...???????????????????????

Now...remember Palin was never an "elected leader".....Mc Idiot appointed her for the possibility of leadership....
.this guy was elected by a great council...and is now... considered a world leader..........

Only one in fifty eh????...
....even if it is an average of all men....not a wise thing to express about those that work in your church..is it?...you would think "the church" would weed them out...

[Beacool]

53. That's a misleading headline.

Where does he use the word "only". I think that his intent was to emphasize that not all clergy are pedophiles, that the vast majority do not sexually abuse children.

I find this quote more interesting:

Asked whether priests might one day be allowed to marry, Francis pointed out that celibacy was instituted “900 years after Our Lord’s death” and that clerics can marry in some Eastern Churches under Vatican tutelage.

“There definitely is a problem but it is not a major one. This needs time but there are solutions and I will find them,” Francis said, without giving further details.

Is he trying to say that the Church might review it's long standing rule on celibacy of the priesthood?

[DeSwiss]

55. So is he planning to label them?

- Like 2% milk? Religion consumers need to know what they're ''buying.''

K&R

[caraher]

58. There's some question about the figure

The numbers in this LA Times article suggest that maybe 1/3 of pedophile priests have faced some form of sanction from Rome.

But this article has a very misleading title - the pope's remarks are in no way about "reassuring" anyone that 2% is a low figure nobody should worry about. It's clear that he is stating the current state of affairs is unacceptable to him, and he mentions cardinals explicitly to emphasize how hard the challenge of rooting out this "leprosy" is.

[bklyncowgirl]

61. This is an inflammatory headline. Read the interview. It was the Pope's advisors who said that.

"Francis also condemned child sex abuse as a “leprosy” in the Church and cited his aides as saying that “the level of paedophilia in the Church is at two percent”.

“That two percent includes priests and even bishops and cardinals,” he said.

Admittedly it's a matter of translation but what Francis seemed to be saying was that his people assured him that it was only 2%. The Pope clearly did not reassure anyone, seemed skeptical that the numbers were so low and sounded very serious about addressing it.

It also seems to me that this is a far more intractable problem than let's say the reforming the finances of the Vatican Bank. That is a limited, solvable problem. Child molesters and the bishops and cardinals who protect them are an integral part of the church and its culture--a culture which sees sexual relations between consenting adults outside the bond of matrimony as a sin yet which forbids its' priests to marry. There is an entire network woven into the fabric of the Catholic Church, I'm sure even among the Pope's advisors, maybe even the same guys who are telling him it's only 2%.

How does a well-meaning leader deal with that level of evil?

[Helen Borg]

62. So, only 20000 of them?

OKAY then...

[hunter]

64. Probably similar to the number of U.S.A. football coaches.

Fuck the NFL.

[WhoWoodaKnew]

67. He's the only Pope, in my lifetime, that I think will actually address this unthinkable problem.

[Zorra]

68. The math: If 2% of all Catholic priests are pedophiles, and each pedophile priest

sexually molests a (conservative) minimum average of 5 children over the course of his lifetime, what is the total number of kids who get their lives fucked up by current pedophile priests?

Let's see...8000 pedophile priests x 5 sexually molested children = 40,000 kids with fucked up lives.

No problem, dude!!!


I can't help but imagine how many non-Catholic pedophile preachers are out there, practicing their sick perversions on our innocent, unsuspecting children.

children molested by pastors

^^google the above^^ to estimate.