Reply #29: And most occurs within families

[happyslug]

When I did CYS the simple fact was that most children who are victims of sexual abuse the prep is more often than not a male relative the victim is living with (who also tend to be victims of such abuse, such sexual abuse just runs in some families). Sexual Abuse is more an issue of POWER than prue sex (In that it is related to Rape, another crime of POWER through a sexual act). Most members of the Clergy do not have access to such young children without the parent being around and thus it is rare (through not unheard of) for the sexual abuse by the Clergy to be against children under age 6. Priests have more "access" to children 6-12 but these, while not unheard of, are rare (Through not as rare as clergy abuse of newborns to six years old). The huge majority of cases of clergy abuse is against pre-teens and young teenagers (Roughly 12-16 years of age).

Notice the age of the victims, the same age most are discovering "sex" themselves. Thus the big problem for the Catholic Church is when is the alleged Sexual abuse an act of Pedophilia or an act of consensual sex? The issue is then when is a person old enough to give consent to sex? Under the English Common Law the age of consent was 12. Thus under the common law almost all of the sexual abuse by the Clergy was NOT pedophilia but Consensual Homosexuality (and why the Pope has expressed concerned as to homosexuals in the Church more than pedophiles).

Now no one liked age 12 being the age of Consent, thus every state passed a Statute setting a higher age of Consent than did the Common law. Thus such crimes are known as STATUTORY Rape, for unlike rape which was a common law crime, Statutory Rape is a crime created by Statute. Even the Catholic Church has accepted the fact that age 12 is to young to give consent for sex, thus under Canon Law the age of consent is 15 (The age of Consent varies from state to state, from 14 through 15, 16, 17 and even 18 years of Age).

In the mid-1990s Pennsylvania had to address this issue when a public school teacher who had had sex with one of his 12 year old students claimed the defense that they were married under the Common law (i.e. a Common Law Marriage). The Court ruled that since there was NO STATUTE overruling the common law as to the age one could consent to a common law marriage, such a Common Law Marriage could be entered into at the Common Law Age of consent (i.e. if the person is 12 years old or older). Thus the marriage was valid and under the Common law a spouse can always consent to have sex with the other spouse (subsequently the Pennsylvania Legislature passed a law saying one must be over age 18 to consent to a common law marriage, and than last year outlawed Common Law Marriages). I go into this to show how the age of consent is a factor in the sexual abuse by the Clergy.

Now the problem with the Catholic Church is not so much Pedophiles but when does a teenager becomes old enough to give consent for sex? A secondary but related problem is do you permit Homosexuals priests near young teenage males? Remember the accusation of Sexual Abuse is rarely one of actual rape but abuse of one's authority over another to get consent for sex.

My point of writing this is to show people that the issue is NOT just pedophilia but, in regards to the Clergy, tied in with the issue of consent and Homosexuality. Should the church permit priest know to have sexual desire for certain type of teenager (and by this I include priests who like young teenage girls in addition to homosexuals) be around such teenagers? This is the REAL issue, not pedophilia or Homosexuality, but should people who have sexual desires for 12-16 years olds be left around such teenagers?

Please note I am addressing the LEGAL issue of Consensual Sex NOT the Religious issue of the Priests breaking their vow of Chasity. The later is strictly within the power of the Church Hierarchy to discipline, the former, i.e. the actual sexual abuse, is all that is actionable within the court system.