New! United Nations Publishes International Humanist and Ethical Union
Statement on Child Abuse and the Holy See
The UN Human Rights Council today [September 18 2009] published a statement by IHEU on the role of the Holy See in the child abuse scandals that rocked the Catholic Church in recent years, and its failure to honour its obligationa under the UN Convention on the RIghts of the Child.
(Click on the link above to read the summary and the statement.)
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No Justice, No Peace!
- featured September 2009 -
"Without Justice there can be no peace. He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it."
-the late Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
By far, most of the victims and survivors of clergy sexual abuse and assault have found themselves with little to no recourse within the criminal and civil justice systems. Thanks to ancient and outdated laws that protect child molesters with ridiculous and unrealistic statutes of limitations, most of the thousands of Catholic priest pedophiles have walked away without a scratch and the ones that aren't dead are probably still molesting today.The message these statutes send is, "If you want to commit a crime and get away with it, rape and torture a bunch of children for a couple of years or decades while wearing a Roman collar or nun's habit. The crimes - against body, mind, and soul - will be too devastating and the victims too young for it to be reported until well after the statutes of limitations have expired." And it's a 'Christian' church that most ardently defends this message and these outmoded laws.
Courageous state lawmakers have valiantly attempted to reform these dangerous restrictions to coincide with the better understanding we have of the effects of childhood sexual abuse and the process of recovering from it. However, the Catholic hierarchy wields its powerful political influence every time the measure comes up, including threats, intimidation, personal attacks, and sabotaging re-election campaigns for legislators who support the reforms.
Unfortunately, not all elected officials understand the urgent need for long-overdue government intervention into the Catholic sex-abuse scandal or the harm and stupidity in continuing to leave it to the Catholic hierarchy to police themselves. The following is a statement in a letter, dated August 7 2009, from a member of the United States House of Representatives:
"After numerous investigations, trials, and settlements, those who have committed these atrocious acts [the sexual abuses of young children in the Catholic Church] have been prosecuted by our legal system. As existing laws at the local, state, and federal level make such acts against minors illegal, Congress has not passed additional legislation on the matter."
Martin Luther King, Jr. is not the only one to emphasize the moral responsibility of those who turn a blind eye to evil acts. In the Catholic faith they call it a "sin of omission". Of course, in between the sex-offending priests, brothers and nuns and the complicit laity are the bishops, vicars and lawyers who continue - to this very day - to place the interests of the predators and the institution over the interests of innocent victims and vulnerable children. In other words, in the Catholic Church today, there is a whole lot of sinnin' goin' on. But, what about the responsibility of the government?
The congressman's letter also stated: "We have the utmost responsibility to care for the victims of these horrific crimes and continue to effectively address their needs".
With all due respect, that's the problem! One of the major needs of a victim of any crime is to have justice take place in the form of redress for the criminal offense(s) perpetrated against them as well as the protection for future potential victims. That's the American way, yet, in these case, that is usually not happening. Of course, it's easier to create and fund more treatment, counseling, and awareness programs with glossy brochures and an annual 5K run with free t-shirts, but that offering is seriously lacking given the severity of the physical, sexual, emotional and spiritual wounds survivors of clergy abuse have suffered.
These statements clearly indicate an extreme ignorance in Congress as to the Catholic Clergy Sexual Abuse Crisis. They read like they were ripped right out of the Catholic Archdiocese Spin-Room Talking Points Manual. Thousands of American citizens have been left to deal with the deeply painful memories of their assaults either alone or with the help of close family, friends or survivors' networks. The government has failed them. Society has failed them, The Church has failed them. Most who went to their church for assistance and guidance were further victimized (see below). Even the settlements that some survivors received do not take the place of real justice, especially when the perps (rapists and enablers) haven't even gotten a slap on the wrist.
Yes, since 2002, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted The Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, established the Office of Child and Youth Protection in Washington, DC, created a National Lay Review Board to oversee the implementation of the Charter; and hired auditors to review each diocese's compliance with the Charter.
What have all these good and wonderful programs done to protect children from abuse or to help victims heal from the sexual abuse and assaults they suffered as children, sometimes for years?
Not much. Except, of course, to lull the politicians, media and laity back to sleep by making them believe any crimes they committed were simply innocent transgressions and that now they finally know that child sex predators shouldn't be pastors or that they ought to call the cops if a parent reports that their child was raped on church property by church employees. Through all of the public-relations gimmicks employed by the bishops - including the pope himself - the church has tricked the public into accepting the fact that they - the guilty ones responsible for the scandal to begin with - get to make the rules, hire the referees and control the instant replay cameras. It is nothing but a scam to give the public a false sense of security. If the hierarchy truly cared about children, they'd stop fighting victims in court, hiding relevant documents, fighting to keep them sealed, firing principals for calling DCFS and speaking to the media, and financially supporting convicted sex-offenders. And then they'd all resign. These men need to be judged by their actions, not their empty and deceitful rhetoric, lame programs and useless policies.
In fact, the bishops - who are master magicians who turn wine into Christ's blood - are putting on a magic show at this very moment. They show the audience the Dallas Charter and, when the public isn't looking, they actually follow a very secret, devious, and dangerous policy called Crimen Sollicitationis. They make speeches and hold press conferences about how concerned they are about victims and survivors while their attorneys sneak into courtrooms nationwide using every legal hardball tactic against those same victims and survivors. They produce colorful posters and prayers about child protection while their well-paid lobbyists swarm state capitol buildings to fight statute of legislation reforms that are necessary for child protection and healing for victims.
The U. S. Constitution, the Catholic Catechism and the Holy Bible all very clearly state the importance of justice for the common good. It's time church and government ' leaders' stop being a blockade in the quests for justice and child protection and start joining the good effort.
"They are afraid of offending and making enemies - and all of this because of self-love. Sometimes it's just that they would like to keep the peace and this, I tell you, is the worst cruelty one can inflict. If a sore not cauterized or excised when necessary, but only ointment is applied, not only will it not heal, but it will infect the whole [body], often fatally."
- Catherine of Siena, Doctor of the Roman Catholic Church"It is better that scandals arise than the truth be silenced."
- St. Gregory the GreatWhat Does the Human Spirit Need to Heal and Move On?
Please Read Rev. Marie Fortune's 7 Steps to Justice in the Column Below:What Does the Human Spirit Need in Order to Heal and Move On?
1. Truth-telling: a chance to speak the truth about what the person has experienced; to tell the story.
2. Acknowledgement: to be heard and understood by someone who matters; and to have the moral quality of the experience acknowledged.
3. Compassion: literally "to suffer with"; for the bystander to be able to listen and be present to the suffering without "fixing" or turning away.
4. Protect the Vulnerable: to protect anyone else who might be vulnerable to harm from this perpetrator.
5. Accountability: to hold the perpetrator accountable; "confession" and apology are the best case scenario but absent that, some process that seeks, through consequences, to prevent further harm; the theological term is repentance.
6. Restitution: material compensation for the losses incurred by the victim; ideally provided by the perpetrator as an act of repentance; if not, then by the community.
7. Vindication: not revenge; to be vindicated is to be set free; scars remain but healing is sufficient so as not to continue to be held in bondage to the trauma.
The above 7 points were offered by Rev. Marie M. Fortune in a Lecture she gave in December 2001.
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