Feminist Theology and the Clergy Sexual Abuse Crisis

2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 632-652
Author(s):  
Susan A. Ross
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Feminist Theology ◽  
Sexual Ethics ◽  
Clergy Sexual Abuse ◽  
Patriarchal Power ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

The clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church is complex. While first and foremost a terrible violation of victims, it is not only about sex or abuse. It concerns unchecked, divinely sanctioned patriarchal power and its devastating consequences. The author reviews the theological issues at stake, including patriarchy, sexuality and sexual ethics, and sin. She argues that addressing the roots of the crisis calls for taking seriously the contributions of feminist theologians to the thinking of the church, especially about establishing relationships of mutuality and equality between clergy and laity.

Clergy Sexual Abuse and the Media

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen J. Terry
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Changes ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Clergy Sexual Abuse ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

Media attention on child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church led to awareness of a serious social problem and increased the levels of disclosure of abuse. The three “emergencies of clerical sexual abuse in the media” occurred in 1985, 1993, and 2002 (Maniscalco, 2005). The catalyst for the media coverage was high-profile clergy offenders with multiple victims and in 2002 also included the claims of cover-ups by high-ranking cardinals in the United States. Most victims of clergy sexual abuse disclosed their abuse decades after the abuse occurred, and the increased rates of disclosure coincided with the three periods of increased reporting in the media. Though the constant reporting in the media led to some misconceptions about CSA generally and CSA within the Catholic Church, it also led to policy changes in how the church responded to allegations of abuse and aimed to prevent future acts of abuse.

Child Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church

2008 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 658-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. White ◽  
Karen J. Terry
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Excessive Force ◽  
Police Organization ◽  
Sex Abuse ◽  
Police Deviance ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

The Catholic Church response to its sexual abuse crisis and how the problem should be addressed parallels the “rotten apple” assertions of police deviance. The rotten apple theory, however, does not fully explain police deviance, as there are often also structural explanations. This article employs Kappeler, Sluder, and Alpert's (1998) police deviance framework to characterize and understand the Catholic Church sex abuse scandal, drawing specific comparisons to the intentional use of excessive force by police. Though the analogy has limitations, there are similarities at both the individual and organizational levels, particularly because the Church has implemented accountability mechanisms similar to the police. The article concludes with a discussion of lessons the Church can learn from the police organization as they seek to prevent, control, and effectively respond to sexual abuse of children by their clergy.

Beyond the Catholic Church

2020 ◽  
pp. 170-194
Author(s):  
Dominica Pradere ◽  
Theron N. Ford ◽  
Blanche J. Glimps
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
North America ◽  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Orthodox Judaism ◽  
Latter Day Saints ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

Since the early 1980s, allegations of the sexual abuse of children by members of the clergy and other representatives of religious organizations have been reported in the media with alarming frequency. In North America, the majority of reports highlight the Catholic Church. Many of these allegations refer to incidents, which took place many years previously. This chapter explores three specific examples of other religious groups, that are not the Catholic Church, involved with the sexual abuse of children. These include the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons), Moravians, and Orthodox Judaism (Haredi).

scholarly journals Agnieszka Łoza, Paweł Beyga, Zaraza w Kościele, wyd. Leksem Studio, Żmigród 2021, ss. 169

2021 ◽  
pp. 299-303
Author(s):  
Bogdan Ferdek
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
The State ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
Polish People ◽  
Catholic Religion ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

In the opinion of Bogdan Ferdek, the new book of Agnieszka Łoza and Paweł Beyga is a special theological report on the state of the Church in Poland. During the pandemic time since 2021 the Catholic Church has had to search for solving problems in the Christian community. According to the authors of this new book, in the Polish Catholic Church two kinds of problems can be discovered. Firstly, there is a problem with morality among the clergy, the problems of sexual abuse and teaching the Catholic religion in Polish schools. Conversely, there is a problem related to the secularization of Polish people. Bogdan Ferdek in his review showed that the new book of two young Polish theologians is an answer to very important questions in the Polish Christendom in the time of the pandemic.

scholarly journals The Catholic Church in need of de-clericalisation and moral doctrinal agency: Towards an ethically accountable hierarchical leadership

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Slater
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Current System ◽  
Hierarchical Control ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Life Issues ◽  
Agent Of Change ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

Under normal circumstances the church would function as an agent of change and transformation, but this article focuses on the church herself that needs radical change if she is to remain relevant in mission and ministry in this current era. Clericalism and the centralisation of hierarchical control can be identified as the root causes of institutional pathology and weakening collegiality. To address clericalism may require the adjustment of seminary training, as in the current system seminarians are nurtured in a sense of separateness, promoting male-ego and feed gender exclusivity and doctrinal self-righteousness. While the seminary was once an instrument of reform in the Catholic Church, established to counter problems such as clerical concubinage and illiteracy, but now it is no longer suitable as it has become the forum that breeds other problems. Priority attention should be paid to purge the church of rampant clericalism, discriminatory scapegoating of gay persons, marginalisation of free thinkers, exclusion of women priests, the perceived moral laxity of family life issues and reception of communion by divorced Catholics without the benefits of annulment. Discrediting the personal authority of the pope is hardly an enlightened option. What ought to be transformed is the centralisation of control and allowing increased localised dominion whereby crises such as sexual abuse scandals could be addressed and solved more speedily and liberally, and limit the need to go to the top for solutions. To wait for centralised, hierarchal structures to deal with urgent issues is not desirable, as speedy accountability is needed to address issues that hurt the church in its entirety.

scholarly journals Intolerance in the Media and Representations of the Catholic Church

2021 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 731-766
Author(s):  
David Kraner
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Social Representations ◽  
Editorial Policy ◽  
Local Media ◽  
National Media ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

Intolerance toward Christians in Europe including Slovenia is increasing and experts are not dealing with it sufficiently. The media plays a key role in disseminating information and shaping social representations. The fact that the media, due to the nature of their action, will always be in conflict with the Church, must not be a reason for intolerance. In Slovenia, the media are the central creators of negative opinions about the Church. They are very sophisticated in spreading Christianophobia. The journalists with the most published articles with negative connotations regarding the Church create negative social representations. Negative topics that are most often associated with the Church in the media are sexual abuse, money and politics. An analysis of the connotation and topic of the articles shows that the serious socio-political themes of the Church are neglected in the media. The local media mostly write positively about the Church, as they are aware of specific events, while the national media write about it negatively since they are often distant from specific events and usually evaluate them according to editorial policy criteria, and not according to professional arguments and varied opinions. The location of events covered negatively in articles happen both within and outside Slovenia. Most negative articles do not include photos; however, tabloids usually include them. By reducing the dissemination of negative and discriminatory messages about the Church and raising the ethics of reporting, intolerance towards Christians and other minorities will decrease.

scholarly journals La política del significado: discursos sociales sobre el abuso sexual de niños y su influencia en la iglesia católica

Pelícano ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 114-132
Author(s):  
Karlijn Demasure
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Practical Theology ◽  
The Will ◽  
The Voice ◽  
International Academy ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

The Politics of Meaning: Societal Discourses on the Sexual Abuse of Children and Their Influence on the Catholic ChurchNota: Traducción del inglés al español a cargo de Diego Fonti. Texto original: Karlijn Demasure (2019). The Politics of Meaning. Societal Discourses on Sexual Abuse of Children and their Influence on the Catholic Church. In Vähäkangas A., Angel S., Helboe Johansen K., (eds.), The Politics of Space and Body. Reforming Practical Theology, International Academy of Practical Theology Conference Series (IAPT.CS), 1, 20-28. Disponible en https://doi.org/10.25785/ iapt.cs.v1i0.49ResumenEste artículo sobre el abuso sexual de niños contribuye a comprender el cambio del enfoque de los perpetradores que niega la voz de las víctimas, incluso al punto de considerar a las víctimas como delincuentes sexuales responsables por su abuso, a un enfoque de “la víctimas primero”. La iglesia católica ha sido fuertemente influida por los principales discursos en la sociedad que dan poder a los psiquiatras, terapeutas y trabajadores sociales. Sin embargo, con respecto al abuso clerical en la iglesia, se pueden identificar dos discursos distintos. En el primero, el pecado se considera causa del abuso, reduciéndolo a una cuestión de la voluntad. El segundo discurso considera que el abuso sexual infantil se debe al contexto de decadencia moral. Es importante por ello superarlos con una visión sistémica del tema.AbstractThis paper on child sexual abuse contributes to an understanding of the shift from a focus on perpetrators that denies the voice of the victims, even holding the victims to be sexual delinquents responsible for their abuse, to a “victims first” approach. The Catholic Church has been heavily influenced by the major discourses in society that give power to psychiatrists, therapists and social workers. However, with regard to clerical sexual abuse in the Church, two distinct discourses can be identified. In the first, sin is considered a cause for abuse, reducing it to a matter of the will. The second discourse considers child sexual abuse due to a context of moral decay. Both discourses need to be overcome by means of a sistemic view of the issue. Key words: Child Sexual Abuse, Catholic Church, Societal Discourses, “Victims First” Approach.

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