Sexual abuse in the Catholic Church

The CCL (Code of Canon Law) does not provide for the possibility that victims or witnesses of sexual abuse to lodge a complaint with the civil authority and, with regard to the offence against ecclesial law or the Catholic faith, sentences may range from deprivation of rights and privileges to suspension of the clerical state, but no sanction implies material redress for the victim, nor does it imply deprivation of liberty for those who committed any kind of abuse. That is, when a priest commits sexual abuse, it is considered a sin, not a civil crime.

In the Catholic Church scheme the usual practice is a policy of concealment. When a priest is accused of committing a crime of sexual abuse against a minor, he is usually transferred «out of the territory» so that the ordinary justice of the territory where the act occurred cannot act on that priest. On the other hand, the Vatican refuses to provide information on any of its members, or on the outcome of its internal investigations into the issue of sexual abuse, quite apart from «confession secrecy», which is tantamount to «banking secrecy».

The main problem of transferring the conflict from the canonical to the civil judicial system is mainly economic. The Catholic Church runs the risk of being considered a company that must bear the economic cost of the crimes committed by its officials, as a cover-up, or as an indirect participant in not establishing effective systems that make sexual abuse impossible. After facing the payment of millions of dollars, several dioceses and archdioceses filed for bankruptcy so that sexual abuse claims could be resolved in bankruptcy courts. Thus the idea of prosecuting the pope arose.

As for victims, children must first «prosecute» the harm they are receiving from a «moral and religious authority», from someone who was often their «great friend», arm themselves with the courage to be able to make the complaint and then find out where, how and to whom to report it. In other words, each case reported represents many more who remain silent and in a proportion that varies depending on where and when. As well as each complaint that goes to trial represents many others that are dismissed or ends in a settlement agreement between the parties.

The process of «mourning» for the victim becomes much more difficult when the tortfeasor remains unpunished, and even worse, enjoys the privilege of exhibiting moral and religious authority to the rest of the regional and international community. The situation becomes more adverse when a large part of society tends to believe that «only a monetary interest» or a «desire to discredit a public figure» prevails behind the denunciations. Strangely enough’, despite the seriousness and scale of these events, not many nations, like Australia, have done a thorough investigation into the issue.

Cases of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church necessarily lead us to question whether celibacy has any influence on the issue. Indeed, the five-year investigation in Australia shows that while celibacy is not a direct cause, it is a condition that makes child abuse more likely. And here we turn to the economic, because one thing is the maintenance of a single priest, and another thing is the cost of supporting a priest, his wife, and all his children.

For the Catholic Church to allow its priests to marry would mean an increase in the cost, because the cost of the priest would have to be added to the cost of the children (education and health). It could be analyzed whether the children of the priests would opt for a private or public education, and whether they would have access to a state or private health system. A separate section would show whether men in the cassock are capable of living, in terms of family life, the values they profess, or whether they will be forced to adopt the grounds for divorce stipulated in the usual civil laws.

Finally, and by proposing a research line, it is possible that there is a relationship between the number of siblings and pederasty, while the adult abuser may have been a victim of domestic rape in his childhood. A large, poor family, with parents away from home most of the time, and in the mid-20th century, could be the setting for this type of situation. A scenario inwhich the Catholic priesthood is presented as an alternative way out of this environment and which, later on, also constitutes the ideal setting for “returning what has been received», it could be, couldn’t it?

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In the internet publications, there are few places where, in addition to the news in turn, references are made to some biographical data on those involved, mentioning the number of brothers.