By MIA FREEDMAN
Is there any crime more heinous than child abuse? If there is, I don’t want to know about it.
Legally, every Australian who suspects or knows about a case of child abuse is required by law to report it to the police.
It’s mandatory.
Unless you’re a Catholic priest and someone tells you about child abuse in the confessional, in which case you’re totally free to do nothing.
No need to mention it.
Even if the abuse is still occurring.
Even if a child – or children – are in danger of further abuse.
Even if a child’s life has been destroyed and nobody is able to help them because they are too frightened, ashamed and traumatised by the abuse to say anything.
Priests are not bound by the same laws as the rest of society – including doctors, teachers and counsellors. So the church is effectively a safehouse for pedophiles who can ‘confess’ to their crimes and receive absolution without consequence.
They are then free to re-offend. Their secrets – their CRIMES – will always be kept away from authorities. They will be protected.
Surely, this is madness.
And never has this madness been highlighted so clearly as this week, when it became clear that child abuse in the Catholic Church has been so systemic over such a long period of time and has been so well covered up by so many individuals, that the Government has been forced to announce a Royal Commission into child sex abuse.
While Julia Gillard has been politically careful to point out that the parameters of the Royal Commission are more far-reaching than just the Catholic Church (it will also look into child abuse in all institutions including schools, community groups, foster homes etc), make no mistake: this is about the Church and the literal get-out-of-jail free card they wield when it comes to protecting paedophiles.
Top Comments
I agree that these disgusting human beings should pay for the crimes they commit, but it doesn't just happen in the Catholic Church, I've heard that if it happens in the Jewish community the rabbi can choose to use his discretion too...am I wrong about this?
Mia, you have elevated the role of the sacrament of Reconciliation (or Confession) in the sexual abuse problem, beyond its actual significance. There has certainly been cases of the Catholic Church covering up sexual abuse, but the role of the Confessional would have a very minor part in this problem. Basically, Reconciliation is not used very widely by Catholics anymore, and even more likely to not be used by a paedophile priest. AND as already stated, if a guilty paedophile knew talking to a priest in the Confessional would definitely lead to a police report, they would definitely not do it.
The Catholic Church has rightly been going through an inquisition which has brought about a deep humiliation and change. Your fury in many ways is understandable, but Mia, you need to be careful that your fury is not an excuse to light the fire of bigotry and destructive hatred.
Finally, by way of explanation - not excuse - the Catholic Church leader like Cardinal Pell are posed questions of a legal nature and so answer in a legalistic way. Often what happens then is an outcry that he has not been more pastoral, more caring. It is difficult to do both at the same time: speak 'legal-ese' and pastorally counselling. I think that's how the trucking company comparison came about ... but somehow, I'm not sure anyone is interested in something being put in context.