UNITED STATES
Mobile Register
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
THE ROMAN Catholic Church is considering rules that would ban gay men from the priesthood -- a decision that, even if controversial, it has the right to make. It would be unfortunate, however, if the debate deflects the church's focus on solving its sex-abuse scandal.
With thousands of U.S. priests having been accused of molesting minors over the years, the church needs to continue to demonstrate that it is cleansing its ranks of pedophiles.
Homosexuality, on the other hand, can be seen as a lesser issue if only because Roman Catholic priests take a vow of celibacy regardless of their sexual orientation.
Some church insiders -- hoping to purge the priesthood of gays -- have tried to link homosexuality and pedophilia, despite research that indicates homosexuals are no more likely than heterosexuals to abuse children. Indeed, the upcoming "instruction" from the Vatican's Congregation for Catholic Education is part of an evaluation of American seminaries, ordered by the late Pope John Paul II in response to the sex abuse crisis.