John Jay College – American Bishops Whitewashed Report on Child Abuse

The American Catholic bishops pulled a Bill Donahue of Catholic League fame by moving the goal line and redefining pedophilia as only having to do with children under 10 in this hack academic report out of John Jay College of Whatever Persuasion the winds blows in NYC.

If you control the definitions in any argument, you win the argument. The argument I think here is about common human decency as measured against catholic CEO mismanagement on this whole sex abuse scandal that does not want to go away. The truth could set them free? I don’t think so.

Children aged 10 and over must have wanted to be abused – were consentual ? – in this “blame Woodstock” “blame modernity” whitewash financed by the same American bishops who failed their flocks in this abomination these past decades that has caused so much desolation in the Christian church.


US Catholic Church study

…Researchers at John Jay College of Criminal Justice said most of the abusive priests were ordained in the 1940s and 50s and were not properly trained to confront the social upheavals of the 1960s. 

David O'Brien, a historian of American Catholicism at the University of Dayton, said the report, Causes and Context of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests in the United States, 1950-2010, was dangerous because it seemed to exonerate bishops.


"This recalls an old tabloid banner headline from an early pre-Boston stage of this crisis: 'Bishops Blame Society'," said O'Brien, referring to the sexual abuse scandal in the Archdiocese of Boston in 2002…


…Less than 5% of the abusive priests could be defined as paedophiles because the majority of victims were aged between 11 and 14.


"There's no indication in our data that priests are any more likely to abuse children than anyone else in society," said lead researcher Karen Terry.


But the finding was criticised by victims because the American Psychiatric Association defines paedophilia as an attraction to children aged 13 or younger….


…The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests dismissed the report as "garbage in, garbage out" because the bishops providing much of the funding for the report.

I am tired of ranting about these failed RC executives who do not even match their original job description. What good are they? Not worth a pile of …. IMHO.


1 Timothy 3:1-5 (KJV)


1 This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.


2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;


3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;


4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;


5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)





Prayer! What an Original Idea Bishop Wenski.

There is the bishop of Orlando (second from left - photo above - under right hand of Jesus) who is doing a Mass of Reparation to repent for the mortal sins against God – presumably regarding abortions by women and condom use by men – and in relation to President Obama’s arrogant uppity personal view of life and Christianity.

Notre Dame's Obama invite riles Catholic bishops

This coming week, Bishop Thomas Wenski of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando, Fla., will take the unusual step of celebrating a Mass of Reparation, to make amends for sins against God. The motivation: to provide an outlet for Catholics upset with what Wenski calls the University of Notre Dame's "clueless" decision to invite President Barack Obama to speak at its commencement and receive an honorary doctorate May 17.

This is a good thing. Prayer. How Original! “A Mass of Reparation, to make amends for sins against God” for mortal sins like abortions by women and condom use by men.

Sounds good from a PR stand point. Any American Bishop can sign on to the “me too” Radio Talk-Show Litmus Loyalty Test against Obama at Notre Dame. Why not try prayer to set your house in order - Bishop Wenski and the other “me too” American bishops following the same tired party line and protest about Notre Dame’s choice.

Notre Dame as a world class institution has the right to bestow a minor honor on this man. This man has done more in a short time for American greatness, for American healing in a symbolic manner greater than half a dozen Vatican Councils.

From the same Article Above:

"I think the bishops who believe abortion is the ultimate litmus test look at the polls and realize Catholics are not listening to them," said the Rev. Mark Massa, co-director of the Curran Center for American Catholic Studies at Fordham University. "They're playing a very dangerous game because they do not have the moral authority they had before the sex abuse crisis, and they're trying to find a toehold and get heard."

How many Masses of Reparation have been said by the these same “me too” bishops for the sins of the clergy against the innocent Bishop Wenski? Dozens? Hundreds? Thousands? Tell me!

Or does morality on that issue straddle a thin blurred line? Perhaps the clergy abuse thing is considered a secular matter because it deals, has dealt, with lawyers, lawsuits, civil and not church laws.

Perhaps the true moral authority of some American bishops can be ascertained after May 17 with this “moral” line in the sand tempest in a moral teapot thing about Obama at Notre Dame - by seeing who is on or off this loyal “me too” bishops' self righteous petition being passed around at present.

American Catholic Blogosphere - a Catholic Taliban?

In the chaos of perhaps a senile out of touch CEO Benedict XVI or the collapse of the corporate structure of the church temporarily fueled with dollars from the sale of marginal churches in the United States, I see a trend emerging. With the collapse of the Journalism of old and the demise of the American Institution of a daily hardcopy newspaper, we are in danger of being deluded or even being blocked from truth.

There seems to also be a power vacuum in the church with many archbishops vying for the red hat and indirectly waging a campaign to be next pope.

Burke is the Ayatollah as Scalia of God on the Vatican Supreme Court and his remarks or is it a witch hunt or intimidation of bishops in the Washington DC area who do not preach a hardline against Catholic Politicians who are pro-choice as opposed to being anti-birth control. His remarks against his competition do not always make it to mainstream media. His words though would seem to be gold when repeated a million times by his blogging buddies.

Fisichella is perhaps a moderate after he tried to apply ointment to the rug burn of Brazilian bishops and their bizarre boiling over of passion about abortion and rape and the lack of rights of children or females and general lack of human rights in that “Catholic” country. Rino also may just be setting up a passionate conservatism placard/smoke screen to hide the ugliness of that recent obscene lack of human compassion to those involved and on the receiving end of a metaphoric burning at the stake. The Catholic blogosphere has been dealing with Rino’s comments instead of the injustice of the actual circumstances of excommunication for the last ten days or so. Can a moderate bishop become pope?

That American Catholic Blogosphere is now attacking Obama and also trying to intimidate a world class learning institution Notre Dame University for bestowing an honorary degree on the President of the United States who is scheduled to address a commencement exercise in May. The Taliban tactics of the ACB (American Catholic Blogosphere) sometimes these days seems indistinguishable from the Taliban tactics of the far right GOP.

This brings me to a feeling that I had at the beginning of the Iraq war. If I want real news I have to use the Internet to go overseas to English Speaking sites in Britain or even Kenya to get the skinny on a lot of what is really going on in the world and for Things that quickly drop off the radar of an American Journalism Tradition and Things where punditry and self delusional incantations and mantras drown out reality like in the RC church.

Below is an article from the BBC on a British Medical Journal attacking the pope on his absurd statement on condoms.

Pope 'distorting condom science'

One of the world's most prestigious medical journals, the Lancet, has accused Pope Benedict XVI of distorting science in his remarks on condom use.

It said the Pope's recent comments that condoms exacerbated the problem of HIV/Aids were wildly inaccurate and could have devastating consequences.

The Pope had said the "cruel epidemic" should be tackled through abstinence and fidelity rather than condom use.

Correspondents say the attack from the Lancet was unprecedentedly virulent.

…"When any influential person, be it a religious or political figure, makes a false scientific statement that could be devastating to the health of millions of people, they should retract or correct the public record," it said.

I have been reluctant to attack the RC church on the subject of clergy and sexual abuse. The following commentary I found rather thought provoking considering the source from an African site. It starts out with condemnation of the stupid condom remarks.

The Catholic Church should put its own house in order

Scientists have agreed that it was nothing short of irresponsible for him to claim that condom use actually increases the rate of HIV infection. It encourages promiscuity, the church believes.

This stance is immoral on two levels: first because it is plainly untrue, and goes against the advice of trained personnel. The church must recognise that it has failed in this mission.

SECONDLY, BECAUSE IT contradicts the kind of philosophy that has due regard for the health of our ailing planet. On the day the Pope arrived in Africa, the Nation featured a picture of dozens of beautiful children, all in the care of the police, their parents unwilling or unable to claim them.

The church fathers are stuck in a time warp; living in medieval times; they are totally out of touch, especially with youth.

Not only does the Vatican refuse to admit that its policies have not worked, but it will also not face the immorality which continues to fester in its own ranks.

Cases of sexual abuse of minors have been reported in countries as far apart as Australia and Mexico. The Pope himself suppressed publication of a report which revealed the extent of this exploitation.

In 2007, child sex abuse cases cost the church $615 million (Sh49 billion), an increase of 54 per cent over the previous year, most of which went towards settling in court. Therapy for the victims and the accused took care of $23 million.

New allegations of abuse in 2007 totalled 689, most of the sufferers being young males between the ages of 10 and 14 when the abuse began.

A Charter for the Protection of Children has done better at protecting clergy from exposure.

And so it goes and continues. The Force be with us all.