Catholic scandal, ecumenical solution: the whole church must combat sexual misconduct. (Leadership).While much recent media hype has focused on the Catholic Church's pedophilia pedophilia, psychosexual disorder in which there is a preference for sexual activity with prepubertal children. Pedophiles are almost always males. The children are more often of the opposite sex (about twice as often) and are typically 13 years or age or younger; scandal, relatively little attention has been given to the high rate of sexual misconduct sexual misconduct Professional ethics Any behavior that violates a health professional's ethics through sexual contact of physician and his/her Pt. See Professional boundaries. in the rest of American Christendom. This truly is a crisis that crosses all borders. For example, research by Richard Blackmon at Fuller Theological Seminary Through its three schools, Theology, Psychology, Intercultural Studies, and the Horner Center for Lifelong Learning, the seminary offers university-style education leading to 13 different degrees accredited by the Association of Theological Schools[1] and the Western shows that 12 percent of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse sexual intercourse or coitus or copulation Act in which the male reproductive organ enters the female reproductive tract (see reproductive system). with a parishioner; 38 percent acknowledged other inappropriate sexualized contact. In a 1990 study by the United Methodist Church United Methodist Church, in the United States, religious body formed by the union in 1968 of the Evangelical United Brethren Church and the Methodist Church (see Methodism). , 41.8 percent of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behavior sexual behavior A person's sexual practices–ie, whether he/she engages in heterosexual or homosexual activity. See Sex life, Sexual life. by a colleague or pastor; 17 percent of laywomen said that their own pastors had sexually harassed them. Philip Jenkins Philip Jenkins (born 1952) is currently Distinguished Professor of History and Religious studies at Pennsylvania State University. Early Life and Work Jenkins was born in Port Talbot, Wales in 1952 and studied at Clare College in the University of Cambridge taking concludes in his book Pedophiles and Priests that while 1.7 percent of Catholic clergy have been found guilty of pedophilia (specifically of boys), 10 percent of Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. Obviously, this is not just a Catholic problem. And solutions must be broader and deeper than those carried out by Catholic cardinals. The whole church has a responsibility to offer decisive leadership in the area of sexual misconduct--whether it is child abuse, sexual exploitation, or sexual harassment sexual harassment, in law, verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature, aimed at a particular person or group of people, especially in the workplace or in academic or other institutional settings, that is actionable, as in tort or under equal-opportunity statutes. . Recently, churches have shown unprecedented unity on issues of poverty and welfare reform. Now it is necessary to call for a broad-based ecumenical council addressing the issue of sexual misconduct in the church. Its goal would be transparency and openness in developing stringent, forward-looking guidelines, consistent with denominational distinctions, for preventing and addressing sexual misconduct within Christian churches and church-related institutions. Such a council could include not only denominational representatives but also a majority presence from external organizations such as child protection agencies, law enforcement, psychiatric services, victims' agencies, and legal and legislative representatives. CRISIS IS OFTEN accompanied by an opportunity for extraordinary growth and leadership. American churches have a unique opening to develop and adopt a single set of policies, principles, practices, and common language on sexual misconduct in Christian institutions that is binding across denominations. A system of cross-denomination review boards could be established to help compliance and accountability. A centralized resource bank could be formed that provides church-wide updates on new legal, financial, psychological, and spiritual developments in the field. Guidelines, both moral and legal, could be established on how clergy, churches, and victims should best use civil and criminal actions in pursuit of justice and financial restitution for injury. A national database could be established with information on all applicants for ordination in any member denomination. Every diocese, conference, presbytery presbytery (prĕz`bĭtĕr'ē, prĕs`–), in architecture, the space in the eastern end of a church reserved for the higher clergy. It was also known in the early Christian Church as the apse, tribune, or exedra. , and district could have a designated child-protection representative whose job is to ensure that the policies and procedures Policies and Procedures are a set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as environmental compliance or other governmental are understood and implemented, and that training is provided at every level of the local church, seminaries, and ministries. Any religious institution or system that leaves power unexamined or smothers sexuality with silence--rather than promoting open conversation that can lead to moral and spiritual maturity--becomes implicated im·pli·cate tr.v. im·pli·cat·ed, im·pli·cat·ing, im·pli·cates 1. To involve or connect intimately or incriminatingly: evidence that implicates others in the plot. 2. in creating an unhealthy and potentially abusive environment. An ecumenical Christian council authentically dedicated to strong moral leadership in the area of clergy sexual misconduct might move the church beyond the extremes of policing our own or abandoning our own. For Christians, the true scandal is not about priests. It's about manipulation of power to abuse the weak. When Jesus said, "Whoever receives the child, receives me," he was rebuking his followers for putting stumbling blocks in front of the defenseless. Church is supposed to be a place where one can lay one's defenses down; where one is welcomed, embraced, and blessed. This can only be authentically expressed in a culture that requires absolute respect for each individual's freedom and self-hood. Until the whole church bows humbly under that requirement, the indictments by wounded women and children will stand. Rose Marie Berger is an associate editor of Sojourners. |
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