Catholic priests: it is better to marry than to burn (and beat up)
Tony Delamothe, deputy editor, BMJ
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BMJ 2009;338:b2142

Regardless of the benefits it may bring, should celibacy ever^ be part
of a job description?

The Ryan commission’s revelations of the scale of physical,^ sexual, and 
emotional abuse in Irish schools and residential^ settings run by
Catholic priests and nuns are staggering. More^ than 90% of the 1090 
witnesses who gave evidence to the commission^ reported physical abuse:

They frequently described casual, random physical abuse but^ many
wished to report only the times when the frequency and^ severity were 
such that they were injured or in fear for their^ lives. In addition to 
being hit and beaten, witnesses described^ other forms of abuse such as 
being flogged, kicked, and otherwise^ physically assaulted, scalded, 
burned, and held under water.

Half the witnesses reported some form of sexual abuse, including^
"vaginal and anal rape, molestation and voyeurism in both isolated^
assaults and on a regular basis over long periods of time."^ In general, 
it was a far greater problem at boys’ schools^ than girls’ schools.

About 30% of witnesses say they now suffer from "a constellation^ of
ongoing, debilitating mental health concerns" serious enough^ to require 
treatment. They claim never to have recovered from^ the rapes and 
beatings they suffered as children; and watching^ these broken adults 
testify on television it’s hard not^ to believe them.

It’s hard to forget, too, that when it comes to sexual^ abuse at the
hands of Roman Catholic priests we have been here^ before—many times. 
This was not an isolated phenomenon^ restricted to Ireland in the second 
half of the 20th century.^ For instances of sexual abuse over the same 
period, Catholic^ dioceses in the United States have paid victims more 
than a^ billion dollars in compensation, while others have avoided 
paying^ out by filing for bankruptcy. Well documented cases have 
occurred^ in many other countries, including Canada and the United 
Kingdom;^ and last year Pope Benedict XVI apologised for child sexual 
abuse by priests in Australia.

And it seems unlikely that the practice is restricted to the past 50
years—that somehow the values of the permissive^ society, traditionally 
dating from the 1960s, corrupted the^ Catholic priesthood. The Vatican 
has been concerned about the issue for centuries, first raising it in 
the Sacramentum Poenitentiae, published in 1741. What is new is that the 
wider public discussion^ of sexual abuse has given victims a language to 
describe what^ happened to them. And they now have reliable routes to 
exposure^ that can’t be closed off by the powerful: a series of 
television documentaries sparked off the recent inquiries.

So how did sexual abuse become endemic in so many of the boys’^ schools 
run by the Catholic priesthood in Ireland? We know that^ those occupying 
positions of authority and power over children—whether^ as teachers, 
scoutmasters, or clergy—are at greater risk^ of abusing their charges. 
But is the priestly discipline of^ celibacy an additional risk factor?

The subject is bedevilled by lack of data. We don’t know^ how the rate 
of abuse among priests compares with that among^ non-clergy. The US 
Conference of Catholic Bishops recently calculated^ that 4% of its 
priests had faced some from of sexual accusation,^ while the Roman 
Catholic church estimates that no more than^ 1% of priests are 
responsible for its sexual scandals. After the latest revelations,
doing the sums for Ireland indicates^ a far higher prevalence: a
forthcoming report examines allegations^ against at least 140 priests in 
one diocese alone (Dublin).^ It’s hard not to believe that many of these 
priests (not^ to mention those in their care) would have been better off 
if they’d ignored the call to the ministry and stayed at^ home like 
their brothers.

The youth of Ireland may be doing just that. In his Holy Thursday^
homily previewing the findings of the Ryan commission, the archbishop of 
Dublin also lamented the fact that in his own diocese there^ were 10 
times more priests aged over 70 than under 40. The demands^ of chastity 
may be relevant here, too; certainly, it’s a significant factor for many 
priests leaving the church.

And yet priestly celibacy is only a discipline of the Roman^ Catholic
church, not part of the church’s infallible dogma, as Wikipedia’s entry
on the topic explains. It achieved^ the status of law only with the
Second Lateran Council of 1139,^ well into the second half of the
church’s lifespan. It could be suspended, although this seems unlikely, 
given the^ pope’s belief that "a male celibate priesthood is morally 
superior to other sections of society" (as the Irish newspaper,^
/Western People/, described it.)

The Roman Catholic church’s staffing problems and the^ fine print of its 
job descriptions may seem a long way away^ from the legitimate concerns 
of a medical journal, and yet both^ are relevant to the latest
revelations from Ireland. Something^ went horribly wrong for thousands 
of its most vulnerable children, at the hands of its priests. The 
psychological and physical damage that was inflicted is the legitimate 
concern of medical journals, as is anything that may help to explain it. 
Of all issues, this is not the time to look away.

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/338/may27_3/b2142