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The Pope admits taking a rosary from a dead priest hands

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Yella

Yella

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/local-news/20140306-pope-confesses-he-took-dead-priest-s-rosary-cross-from-casket.ece

Hey,lookee here, this looks like an antique. Maybe worth a few bucks. Here, bro, lemme me have it. You ain't gonna be using it no more.

http://warpedinblue,blogspot.com/

dumpcare



You just can't trust anyone these days.

Joanimaroni

Joanimaroni

Dammit.

no stress

no stress

Well, that's a step up from bending little boys over so ....win win.

no stress

no stress

Catholic sex abuse cases

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It has been suggested that Catholic abuse cases be merged into this article. (Discuss) Proposed since December 2012.





Graffiti on a wall in Lisbon depicting a priest chasing two children, denouncing the child abuse that rocked the Catholic Church.
The Catholic sex abuse cases are a series of allegations, investigations, trials and convictions of child sexual abuse crimes committed by Catholic priests, nuns and members of Roman Catholic orders against children as young as three years old with the majority between the ages of 11 and 14.[1][2][3] These cases include anal and oral penetration and have resulted in criminal prosecutions of the abusers and civil lawsuits against the church's dioceses and parishes. Many of the cases span several decades and are brought forward years after the abuse occurred. Cases have also been brought against members of the Catholic hierarchy who did not report sex abuse allegations to the legal authorities. It has been shown they deliberately moved sexually abusive priests to other parishes where the abuse sometimes continued.[4] This has led to a number of fraud cases where the Church has been accused of misleading victims by deliberately relocating priests accused of abuse instead of removing them from their positions.[5]

The cases received significant media and public attention in Canada, Ireland, the United States, and throughout the world.[6] In response to the attention, members of the church hierarchy have argued that media coverage has been excessive and disproportionate.[7] According to a Pew Research Center study, media coverage mostly emanated from the United States in 2002, when the Boston Globe began a critical investigation. By 2010 much of the reporting focused on child abuse in Europe.[8][9] From 2001-2010 the Holy See, the central governing body of the Catholic Church, has "considered sex abuse allegations concerning about 3,000 priests dating back up to 50 years" according to the Vatican's Promoter of Justice.[10] Cases worldwide reflect patterns of long-term abuse and the covering up of reports.[note 1] Church officials and academics knowledgeable about the Roman Catholic Church say that sexual abuse by clergy is generally not discussed, and thus is difficult to measure.[6][11] In the Philippines, where as of 2002 at least 85% of the population is Catholic, revelations of child sexual abuse by priests followed the United States' reporting in 2002.[12]

Research and expert opinion reported in 2010 indicated that men within the Catholic Church might be no more likely than others to commit abuse,[13][14][15][16] and indicated that the prevalence of abuse by priests had fallen sharply in the previous 20 to 30 years.[17]



Contents [hide]
1 International extent of issue
2 Contemporary history of child sex abuse 2.1 Roman Catholic cases
2.2 Public and political issues
2.3 Lawsuits

3 Prevalence 3.1 Australia
3.2 Austria
3.3 Belgium
3.4 Canada
3.5 Ireland


3.6 Norway
3.7 Poland
3.8 United States


4 Lawsuits and their effects 4.1 United States

4.2 Germany

5 Irish government responses
6 Church responses 6.1 Diocesan responses







6.2 Episcopal responses


6.3 Vatican responses













7 Criticisms of church responses 7.1 For non-removal
7.2 For secrecy among bishops
7.3 For Vatican statements denying responsibility (contrary to canon law)
7.4 For lack of transparency in Vatican proceedings
7.5 For failure to prevent further abuse

8 United Nations
9 Media coverage 9.1 BBC documentary in 2006

10 Debate over causes 10.1 Seminary training
10.2 Impact of psychology from previous decades
10.3 Pedophilia and ephebophilia
10.4 Gay priests and homosexuality
10.5 Clerical celibacy
10.6 Male culture of the church
10.7 Priest shortage
10.8 Purported declining standards in prevailing culture

11 Popular culture 11.1 Publications
11.2 Films and documentaries
11.3 Music
11.4 Television

12 See also
13 Notes
14 References
15 Further reading
16 External links

International extent of issue[edit]

See also: Roman Catholic sex abuse cases by country





Catholic Church - Percentage by country.
Sexual abuse of children under the age of consent by priests receives significant media and public attention in Canada, the Ireland, United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Belgium, France, Germany and Australia, while cases have been reported throughout the world.[6] Many of the cases span several decades and are brought forward years after the abuse occurred.

Although nation-wide enquiries have only been conducted in the United States and Ireland, cases of clerical sexual abuse of minors have been reported and prosecuted in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and other countries. In 1994, allegations of sexual abuse on 47 young seminarians surfaced in Argentina.[18] In 1995, Cardinal Hans Hermann Groër resigned from his post as Archbishop of Vienna, Austria over allegations of sexual abuse, although he remained a Cardinal.[19] Since 1995, over one hundred priests from various parts of Australia were convicted of sexual abuse.[20][non-primary source needed]

In Ireland, a report (see Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse) was made which covered six decades (from the 1950s) and noted "endemic" sexual abuse in Catholic boys' institutions, with church leaders aware of what was going on and government inspectors failing to "stop beatings, rapes and humiliation."[21] Police examine sex abuse report: The commission's report on church abuse ran to five volumes Police in the Irish Republic are examining if criminal charges can be brought over a damning report on child sex abuse at Catholic institutions.[22]

In Australia, according to Broken Rites, a support and advocacy group for church-related sex abuse victims, as of 2011 there have been over one hundred cases where Catholic priests have been charged for child sex offences.[23][24] A 2012 police report detailed 40 suicide deaths directly related to abuse by Catholic clergy in the state of Victoria.[25] In January 2013, the terms of reference were announced for an Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse which would investigate institutional sexual abuse of minors related, but not exclusive, to matters concerning clergy of the Catholic Church.[26]

Of the Catholic sexual abuse cases in Latin America, the most famous is arguably of the sexual scandal of Father Marcial Maciel, the leader of the Legion of Christ, a Roman Catholic congregation of pontifical right made up of priests and seminarians studying for the priesthood.[27] This occurred after the Legion spent more than a decade denying allegations and criticizing the victims who claimed abuse.[28]

In Tanzania, Father Kit Cunningham and three other priests were exposed as paedophiles after Cunningham's death.[29][30] The abuse took place in the 1960s but was only publicly revealed in 2011, largely through a BBC documentary.[31][32]

Church officials and academics knowledgeable about the Third World Roman Catholic Church say that sexual abuse by clergy is generally not discussed, and thus is difficult to measure.[6] This may be due in part to the more hierarchical structure of the Church in Third World countries, the "psychological health" of clergy in those regions, and because third word media, legal systems and public culture are not as apt to thoroughly discuss sexual abuse.[6] In the Philippines, where as of 2002 at least 85% of the population is Catholic, the revelations of sexual abuse by priests, including child sexual abuse, followed the United States' reporting in 2002.[12]

Academic Mathew N. Schmalz notes India as an example: "you would have gossip and rumors, but it never reaches the level of formal charges or controversies."[6] Traditionally, the Roman Catholic Church has held tight control over many aspects of church life around the globe, including "the words used in prayer", but left sex abuse cases to be handled locally.[6] In 2001, sex abuse cases were first required to be reported to Rome.[6] In July 2010, the Vatican doubled the length of time after the 18th birthday of the victim that clergymen can be tried in a church court and streamlined the processes for removing "pedophile priests".[33][34][35]

In A Perspective on Clergy Sexual Abuse by Thomas Plante, a psychiatrist specializing in abuse counseling and considered an expert on clerical abuse, he states "approximately 4% of priests during the past half century (and mostly in the 1960s and 1970s) have had a sexual experience with a minor."[36][37] According to Newsweek magazine, the figure is similar to that in the rest of the adult population.[38]

Allegations of and convictions for sexual abuse by clergy have been subjects of public debate in many countries. Although there are no figures available on the number of sexual abuse cases in different regions, in 2002, The Boston Globe reported "clearly the issue has been most prominent in the United States."[6] The US is the country with the highest number of Catholic Sex Abuse cases,[39] leading Plante to surmise that the "crisis in the United States reached epidemic proportions within the Church, the likes of which haven't been witnessed before."[36][not in citation given]

After the United States, the country with the next highest number of reported cases is Ireland.[21] A significant number of cases have also been reported in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and countries in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia.[40] In 2004, the John Jay report tabulated a total of 4,392 priests and deacons in the U.S. against whom allegations of sexual abuse had been made.

In response to the attention, members of the church hierarchy have argued that media coverage has been excessive and disproportionate.[7][not in citation given] According to a Pew Research Center study, in 2002 the media coverage was focused on the US, where a Boston Globe series initiated widespread coverage in the region. However, by 2010 the focus had shifted to Europe.[8][9]

In September 2011, a submission was lodged with the International Criminal Court alleging that the Pope, Cardinal Angelo Sodano (Dean of the College of Cardinals), Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone (Cardinal Secretary of State), and Cardinal William Levada (then-current Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith) had committed a crime against humanity by failing to prevent or punish perpetrators of rape and sexual violence in a "systematic and widespread" concealment which included failure to co-operate with relevant law enforcement agencies.[41] In a statement to the Associated Press, the Vatican described this as a "ludicrous publicity stunt and a misuse of international judicial processes." Lawyers and law professors emphasised that the case is likely to fall outside the court's jurisdiction.[42]

Contemporary history of child sex abuse[edit]

Child sexual abuse is an umbrella term describing offenses in which an adult engages in sexual activity with a minor or exploits a minor for the purpose of sexual gratification.[43][44] The American Psychiatric Association states that "children cannot consent to sexual activity with adults," and condemns any such action by an adult as "a criminal and immoral act which never can be considered normal or socially acceptable behavior."[45] Only at the beginning of the 1900s did Western society begin to regard children as fledgling citizens whose "creative and intellectual potential require fostering" rather than "cheap labor".[46] According to The Atlantic, "the idea of the 'modern child' was shaped by the same forces that shaped the rest of society: industrialization, urbanization, and consumerism."[46]

Child sex abuse has gained public attention in the past few decades and has become one of the most high-profile crimes. Since the 1970s, child molestation and the sexual abuse of children has increasingly been recognized as deeply damaging to children and thus unacceptable for society as a whole. While sexual use of children by adults has been present throughout history, it has only become the object of significant public attention in recent times.[47] The first published work dedicated specifically to child sexual abuse appeared in France in 1857: Medical-Legal Studies of Sexual Assault (Etude Médico-Légale sur les Attentats aux Mœurs), by Auguste Ambroise Tardieu, a noted French pathologist and pioneer of forensic medicine.[48]

Roman Catholic cases[edit]

In the 1950s, Gerald Fitzgerald, who founded the Congregation of the Servants of the Paraclete (a religious order that treats Roman Catholic priests who struggle with personal difficulties such as pedophilia), concluded that "[sexual abuse] offenders were unlikely to change and should not be returned to ministry", and this was discussed with Pope Paul VI (1897 – 1978) and "in correspondence with several bishops".[49] In 2001, sex abuse cases were first required to be reported to Rome.[6] After the 2002 revelation that cases of abuse were widespread in the Church, The Dallas Morning News did a year-long investigation.[1] The results made public in 2004 showed that even after the public outcry, priests were moved out of the countries where they had been accused and were still in "settings that bring them into contact with children, despite church claims to the contrary".[1] Among the investigation's findings is that nearly half of 200 cases "involved clergy who tried to elude law enforcement."[1] In July 2010, the Vatican doubled the length of time after the 18th birthday of the victim that clergymen can be tried in a church court and streamlined the processes for removing "pedophile priests".[33][34][35]

The cases received significant media and public attention in Canada, Ireland, the United States, and throughout the world.[6] In response to the attention, members of the church hierarchy have argued that media coverage has been excessive and disproportionate.[7] According to a Pew Research Center study, media coverage mostly emanated from the United States in 2002, when a Boston Globe series began a critical mass of news reports; by contrast, in 2010 much of the reporting focused on child abuse in Europe.[8][9]

Public and political issues[edit]

Child sexual abuse became a public issue in the 1970s and 1980s. Prior to this point in time, sexual abuse remained rather secretive and socially unspeakable. Studies on child molestation were nonexistent until the 1920s and the first national estimate of the number of child sexual abuse cases was published in 1948. By 1968, 44 out of 50 U.S. states had enacted mandatory laws that required physicians to report cases of suspicious child abuse. Second wave feminism (early 1960s to late 1990s) brought greater awareness of child sexual abuse and violence against women, and made them public, political issues.[50][51]

Legal action began to become more prevalent in the 1970s with the enactment of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act in 1974 in conjunction with the creation of the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect. Since the creation of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, reported child abuse cases have increased dramatically. The National Abuse Coalition was created in 1979 to create pressure in congress to create more sexual abuse laws. In 1986, Congress passed the Child Abuse Victims' Rights Act, giving children a civil claim in sexual abuse cases. The number of laws created in the 1980s and 1990s began to create greater prosecution and detection of child sexual abusers. Megan's Law, enacted in 2004, gives the public access to knowledge of sex offenders nationwide.[52] Anne Hastings described these changes in attitudes towards child sexual abuse as "the beginning of one of history's largest social revolutions."[53]

According to John Jay College of Criminal Justice professor B.J. Cling:


By the early 21st century, the issue of child sexual abuse has become a legitimate focus of professional attention, while increasingly separated from second wave feminism...As child sexual abuse becomes absorbed into the larger field of interpersonal trauma studies, child sexual abuse studies and intervention strategies have become degendered and largely unaware of their political origins in modern feminism and other vibrant political movements of the 1970s. One may hope that unlike in the past, this rediscovery of child sexual abuse that began in the 70s will not again be followed by collective amnesia. The institutionalization of child maltreatment interventions in federally funded centers, national and international societies, and a host of research studies (in which the United States continues to lead the world) offers grounds for cautious optimism. Nevertheless, as Judith Herman argues cogently, 'The systematic study of psychological trauma...depends on the support of a political movement.'[54]

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