Stories--you could say scandals--involving sexual abuse of
young persons by Roman Catholic priests have been in the news lately, and this
is not the first time by any means. It's been a repeated story and by now a
long-standing vexation for the Church.
Now, I want to say as soon as I can and as strongly and
emphatically as I can that pedophilia (sexual attraction to children) and
homosexuality are two different phenomena and not connected. In fact, studies
have shown that most men who have a sexual attraction to very young persons are
heterosexual. However, I discuss both of these sexual inclinations here because
I believe the Church is seen as a refuge for both of these categories of
people.
Quite a few years ago, as a result of a position I then
held, I was sent, anonymously, an article--also anonymous but supposedly
written by an insider--with estimates of the percentages of homosexuals in the
priesthood, in monasteries and convents, and in seminaries. The numbers were
estimates, and even so I don't have them at my fingertips. Suffice to say they
were surprisingly, amazingly high.
I have what I believe is a very reasonable explanation for
these data.
What I believe happens is this: A (probably young) man or
woman perceives in him/herself urges or attractions--for the same sex, for minors, or for both--which he has been
taught (sometimes very emphatically) are wrong, shameful, sinful. He
sees the Church as a solution, believing that once he has taken his celibacy vows,
his efforts and desire to remain true to those vows will help him to suppress
those unacceptable desires.
Unfortunately, and very sadly, it typically does not work.
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