Sexual Abuse of Minors in Protestant Churches

[LavenderMom23]

Sexual Abuse of Minors in Protestant Churches

By Father Jonathan Morris

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The mainstream media has all but ignored the recent Associated Press report that the three major insurance companies for Protestant Churches in America say they typically receive 260 reports each year of minors being sexually abused by Protestant clergy, staff, or other church-related relationships.

In light of the sex abuse scandal that rocked the Catholic Church beginning five years ago, religious and victims’ rights organizations have been seeking this type of data for years. It has been hard to come by since Protestant Churches are more de-centralized than the Catholic Church.

Responding to heavy media scrutiny, the Catholic Church has reported that since 1950, 13,000 “credible accusations” have been brought against Catholic clerics (about 228 per year.) The fact that this number includes all credible accusations, not just those that have involved insurance companies, and still is less than the number of cases in Protestant churches reported by just three insurance companies, should be making front page of The New York Times and the network evening news. It’s not.

Seems like you can't be a Christian without running into this issue.

[lolamac]

 Sorry can't really get on board with this....Jews and Muslim and other faiths than Christianity have these dirty little secrets...some are just better at hiding them longer than others.

There's a whole sick world out there that thinks sex with children is not only permissible but common place in their lives.

Second only to the crime itself is the labeling of any ONE religion as the culprit of this sick and disgusting abuse of power and authority.

 

[CoeyG]

 All religions have evil among them.   They should be tried convicted and sentenced like everyone else who commits such crimes.   Being a "man  of the cloth" doesn't give one special privlige to harm our children.

[MemawBrie]

 

Quoting CoeyG:

 All religions have evil among them.   They should be tried convicted and sentenced like everyone else who commits such crimes.   Being a "man  of the cloth" doesn't give one special privlige to harm our children.

I agree.  I don't care what religion a person is from...molesting children is NOT acceptable, and the pedophile should be locked up so they can't violate anyone else!

 

 

[babyfat5]

It is not just christian religions it is all religions. This should be a wake up call for some who think their clergy is beyond reproach they are not, they are human and as humans many chose to do foul awful things.

[PamR]

I can name churches right here in my area that have had allegations made against ministers.  Difference seems to be that they church doesn't try to cover it up after it happens, they get rid of the people doing it. 

[atlmom2]

Yes, but did they know about it and just switch them to different churches like the Catholics did? 

[LavenderMom23]

Yeah, pretty much how I feel. Anyone who commits such crimes should be punished. I don't care who they are. 

Quoting MemawBrie:

 

Quoting CoeyG:

 All religions have evil among them.   They should be tried convicted and sentenced like everyone else who commits such crimes.   Being a "man  of the cloth" doesn't give one special privlige to harm our children.

I agree.  I don't care what religion a person is from...molesting children is NOT acceptable, and the pedophile should be locked up so they can't violate anyone else!

 

 

[lolamac]

 

Quoting atlmom2:

Yes, but did they know about it and just switch them to different churches like the Catholics did? 

 OH I am sure they all have their own dirty little ways of covering it up....NO one wants their religion in any way associated with this topic. Molestation is evil like that...even if the accused party is completely innocent the accusations have been made and they are presumed guilty by many...the damage of even uttering the accusation is done from the time the words leave the accusers mouth.

[LavenderMom23]

Catholics can't just 'fire' priests. We don't cover up for them or accept their behaviors, but at the same time we don't say "oh, look a sinner, let's throw them in the trash". Catholics demand all kinds of confessions and acts of repentance from their clergy, & at times moving them to monasteries. Despite that media would like you to believe otherwise. We believe in both forgiveness and consequences. Have you read the papal letters to the priests who were guilty? They seriously were NOT let off the hook. 

[CoeyG]

I often wonder about my ex husband, he grew up in the Catholic Church, was Altar Boy, all of that.  Once he left his parents home though he became atheist.   His military dog tags say "Roman Catholic" but he refused to wear them, they were always stuffed in his pockets.   What I wonder about is if something happened to him, he won't talk about his growing up Catholic, he admits to being an Altar Boy but refuses to talk about it.