Iowa View: Church Makes Major Strides against Abuse

By Tom Carney
Des Moines Register
July 4, 2013

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20130703/OPINION01/307030026/0/news01/?odyssey=nav%7Chead&nclick_check=1

In light of the publicity in recent years about the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, it’s fair to ask, “Is the Catholic Church doing any better in protecting children?”

It appears so.

The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University, which gathered data for an annual audit of U.S. Catholic dioceses, found “the fewest allegations and victims reported since the data collection for the annual reports began in 2004.”

The Annual Report on the Implementation of the Charter for Protection of Children and Young People says that all but one U.S. diocese — Lincoln, Neb. — are compliant with its 17-point charter. The charter is described as “a comprehensive set of procedures” established by American bishops in 2002 “for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy.” It includes guidelines for reconciliation, healing, accountability and prevention of acts of abuse.

Although one case is too many, it’s noteworthy that the incidence of sexual abuse by priests is mostly in the past, though we can expect a continuation of reporting of past incidents. The report notes that “68 percent of allegations made in 2011 were of incidents from 1960-1984,” and the most common period for allegations was 1975-1979. The report also found that most of the accused have died or been removed from ministry, and many had been accused previously.

Three percent (or 21) of the allegations noted in the 2011 report came from current minors. Of those, “seven were considered credible by law enforcement; three were determined to be false; five were determined to be boundary violations, and three are still under investigation,” the report said. The credibility of three allegations could not be determined.

In the same period, “683 adults who were victims/survivors of abuse in the past came forward to report on allegations for the first time.”

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The church may be doing better in protecting kids, but the damage has been done — to the children and their families, as well as to the church itself, its members and its clergy. Indeed, there is evidence the damage to Catholic clergy is disproportional. A study by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, conducted in 2003-04, found that about 4 percent of U.S. priests were found to have abused children, but the public perception may be that a much higher percentage were involved.

I couldn’t find a relevant study for the U.S., but a 2011 study commissioned by the Irish Iona Institute, which describes itself as promoting “the place of marriage and religion in society,” found that 70 percent of the public in Ireland — a traditionally Catholic country — highly exaggerates the number of priests involved in the sexual abuse of children. The Iona study accepts the 4 percent U.S. figure for Ireland, but the study found that about 42 percent of the Irish public believes that over 20 percent of priests are abusers.

U.S. numbers are likely to be similar or even more exaggerated. This may result from the great dissonance felt by the public between the ironic specter of abuse and the traditional view of priests as men of God who profess and teach adherence to the Christian ethic.

Hopefully, we can all get past that, adjusting to a more realistic view. This news about the church’s progress in stopping abuse of children should help.