CathNews
September 30, 2009
http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=16767
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| Archbishop Silvano Tomasi |
Vatican UN Observer Archbishop Silvano Tomasi has lashed out at criticism over the Church's handling of the pedophilia crisis saying the Catholic Church is "busy cleaning its own house" and that the problems with clerical sex abuse in other churches are as big, if not bigger.
In a statement following the UN Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, Vatican observer Archbishop Silvano Tomasi said that most abusive clergy who commit such acts are not pedophiles but homosexuals attracted to sex with adolescent males, UK's The Guardian reported.
Archbishop Tomasi said "available research" shows that only 1.5%-5% of Catholic clergy are involved in child sex abuse.
He quoted statistics from the Christian Science Monitor newspaper that most US churches being hit by child sex abuse allegations are Protestant and that sexual abuse within Jewish communities is common.
He added that sexual abuse is far more likely to be committed by family members, babysitters, friends, relatives or neighbours, and male children are quite often guilty of sexual molestation of other children, the news report said.
The statement said that rather than paedophilia, it would "be more correct" to speak of ephebophilia, a homosexual attraction to adolescent males.
"Of all priests involved in the abuses, 80 to 90% belong to this sexual orientation minority which is sexually engaged with adolescent boys between the ages of 11 and 17."
"As the Catholic church has been busy cleaning its own house, it would be good if other institutions and authorities, where the major part of abuses are reported, could do the same and inform the media about it."
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