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If celibacy causes priests to become homosexual and sexually molest adolescent boys,?

why is the per capita rate of such crimes slightly higher among Protestant clergy, most of whom are married????????

14 Answers

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  • Bruce
    Lv 7
    9 years ago
    Favorite Answer

    Celibacy doesn't cause priests to become homosexuals and molest adolescent boys. Protestant clergy molest at slightly higher rates, and teachers and coaches molest their charges at dramatically higher rates.

    However, entering holy orders does not prevent priests from becoming homosexuals. To some extent, it leads them into temptation by removing them from the civilizing institution of marriage. That is why Jesus specifically said the celibacy ("becoming a eunuch for the kingdom") is not for everyone.

    The Catholic Church has taken the strongest measures of any church to screen potential clergy for homosexuality, to adopt zero-tolerance policies, and to train all leaders who work with children on preventing sexual abuse. The cases that make the news occurred decades ago, and in many cases, they owe to manufactured memories and the desire to make a fast buck in a lawsuit. Today, the Catholic Church is the safest place a child can be.

    Cheers,

    Bruce

  • 9 years ago

    Celibacy is not the cause because celebacy is a pure state where a person is in a genuine state of love and committment with God. Believe it or not the latter state is possible but to each man comes a variety of temptations especially more oppressive if the temptor knows your a good man of God and so he Satan will despise you and try even harder to see where he can influence even trap good men. The devil hates the Church.

    Celebacy is just like if your in a marriage relationship but in a spiritual sense where prayer, life, love, charity celebration of mass, the teaching and sermons are all contributing and satisfying enough for many priests, while sexual desires are a feeble and distant drive. But of course they are human, men in a sinful world surrounded by temptations just as you and I but they have chosen to refrain.

    But what your speaking of is child molestation and paraphila, this is in no way celebacy, what you speak of is a form of addiction or disease, even an oppressive negative nature, of which type of individual seeks out where he or she can violate the innocense of children. This type of person I do not believe was ever genuinely celebat but was intending to use the profession to access innocense this type of person is a servant of sex and evil and not God. This trash enters many professions from teachers, to ministers etc etc. I am a counselor of felony offenders have dealt to some extent with sex offenders and have done some research on this type of offender so I think you got your moneys worth by asking me.

  • Anonymous
    9 years ago

    Celibacy doesn't cause anything, and homosexuality and pedophilia are not related whatsoever. I can well imagine that some homosexual and pedophilic people might have entered the priesthood because they mistakenly believed that their devotion to God might "cure" them, though. And priests are not the only people who molest adolescent boys. This just used to be one of those professions that enabled priests to get away with such crimes easier.

  • 6 years ago

    the catholic priest knew they have to be celibate before they enter the seminary. Thus celibacy does not cause homosexual molestations. Ask yourself why a protestant minister, who has a beautiful wife and 2 beautiful kids would still want to sodomize others people's children??

  • Mike N
    Lv 6
    9 years ago

    Well, knowing you as I do through your previous questions and answers, you're fully aware that "IF" is the key word in your question, since celibacy does NOT cause Priests to become homosexuals and sexually molest adolescent boys. Liberalism and homosexuality causes such abuse of our youth, as Michael S. Rose clearly points out in his very good book "Goodbye, Good Men: How Liberals Brought Corruption into the Catholic Church", (2002), Regnery Publishing, Inc., hardback, 246 pages. It's very good writing so very easy to read. I got my copy years ago from the Conservative Book Club, which you can reach at 1-877-222-1964, if you're interested. God Bless you.

    Source(s): I'm a Roman Catholic of 60+ years now and a mental health professional with over two decades experience, now retired.
  • ?
    Lv 6
    9 years ago

    Your question contains a statement that simply is not true. Celibacy does not cause priests to become homosexual or child molesters. Fact: Less than 2% of catholic priests world wide have been found guilty of paedophilia. The rate of homosexuals in the priesthood is higher than in other professions but homosexuals are NOT sexually attracted to children. Most catholic priests live out their priestly celibate lives in love and devotion to God and His Church.

  • ?
    Lv 4
    9 years ago

    IT is yet to be proved that Celibacy causes Pedophilia. It is verifiable that Secular Married Men and also Women commit sexual offenses against young people of either gender.

    I thought that it is also a fact that offenses committed by priests was/is at a low rate compared to the above mentioned.

    Source(s): A thought
  • 9 years ago

    Where have you ever seen statistics that support that garbage, Brother? I've not seen it...If I wanted to appear as clever as my questions Brother, a better question might be in the area of....."Do you believe that many young men who feel the homosexual tendencies attempt to flee to the Catholic Church or Clergy or other church groups in an effort to be rid of their homosexual tendencies being closer to God and all? Now, there you might have a question with serious and thought out intent...But just because we find many clergy having higher percentages of homosexuality, does not explain why and and how they were directed to the Preacher's Pulpit and Priesthood

  • 9 years ago

    You have to be careful about two things in your line of thinking:

    1. Correlation is not causation. Any adult male that molests boys probably has a history of attraction to boys that shapes the life and career they choose. In other words, a perfectly healthy religious adult who becomes a priest for religious reasons is not necessarily going to be *caused* to molest boys.

    2. The criminal and statistical reports of the moral crimes of the Catholics could easily be exaggerated by the effect of reporting bias. In other words, if society dislikes Catholics and expects them to be child molesters, it will become reported and accepted more often.

    All that said, I personally think choosing a life where sex is a sin and where there is intimate contact with vulnerable people is a set-up for moral crimes to happen.

  • 9 years ago

    Because celibacy doesn't cause people to become gay, that's why. Being born gay causes people to be gay; nothing else does.

    Your "argument" just disappeared in a little puff of logic. Don't you hate when that happens?

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