…victim advocates say that church law still allows offenders in ministry.
“The Episcopalians, like most denominations, have a long way to go,” said David Clohessy, executive director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. “It’s alarming that the denomination hasn’t even committed to a ‘one-strike’ policy on paper.”
But Bishop Kenneth Price of Pittsburgh believes that the policies dioceses are required to enact create a de facto one-strike rule that keeps offenders out.
“Over the years this has become a much more public concern. The House of Bishops is very concerned for the protection of alleged victims … and the canons are very clear on what to do,” said Bishop Price, who is also secretary of the House of Bishops.
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10214/1077004-455.stm#ixzz0vS3iD2jy
“I was accused of negligent supervision. It was my fault that the curate got into bed with the lady. I was supposed to have prevented that in some way or another,” said Bishop Frey, 80, a former dean of Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge
I appreciate Bill Frey’s pique at what he said he was accused of, however, the facts are he did not remove the curate from ministry or discipline him but merely transfered him to another parish — that is one reason why the diocese was compelled to award the victim the million dollars.
Thank you David Wilson for reminding everyone of facts, rather than Bishop Frey’s interesting recollection of events.
I disagree with clergy boundary/sexual abuse in any way, shape, or form.
But organizations must take care that the culture does not shift to overblown fingerpointing, false accusations, and hypersensitivity.
Years ago, friends of mine were members of a church where two teenage boys made a sexual allegation against the priest. The diocese took steps to investigate it. Sadly, the priest killed himself(I fully realize that suicide is a multifactorial event, and often a permanent solution to temporary problems perceived by an irrational mind). Several years after the suicide, one of the boys(now a young man) came forward and said they had made the whole thing up because they were unhappy with the priest about a failed plan for a youth mission trip. The young man said he could no longer live with the guilt. I doubt that was much comfort to the clergyman’s widow and kids.
False allegations are used all the time to breed a culture of mistrust, often resulting in the priest’s removal or departure. It’s my hope that religious organizations have processes in place to get to the truth by hearing BOTH sides of the story. (Not that there is any excuse or reason to violate boundaries or abuse children). But, I have also seen teenage girls make false sexual allegations against male teachers just to run them out of their school or cause trouble.
I feel for true victims, but agenda-driven vindictiveness also needs to be considered. While it is unchecked, then it’s the clergy(or possibly teachers) who become the wronged victims.
#3, certainly true. But in today’s world, priests and teachers know of such perfidies and must always ensure that they are not in situatons in which such accusations can be made without witnesses to disprove them. Certainly pastoral care may suffer, but in today’s world, that is the price that has to be paid for the lack of proper vetting of seminary attendees and the lack of proper disciplinary procedures and lack of following those procedures by all churches.
“…must always ensure that they are not in situations in which such accusations can be made without witnesses to disprove them”.
That’s naive, Billy. I’ve seen false accusations brought against a priest with valid witnesses to the contrary and a psychological evaluation that blamed the church, not the priest. And the priest still had to leave, one of the pitfalls of at least the Episcopal system–all a vestry has to do is refuse to work with a priest, and the priest is OUT, despite what even the wider congregation may want or think.
These days, I advise any good people who ask me to stay out of the priesthood altogether–another price to be paid and the Church’s loss–but, while it has such a bad habit of eating its young and employing the Peter Principle, c’est la vie.
#5, my statement may be naive (though at 63 and a litigation lawyer for 33 years, I’ve been around the block a few times). But your advice to prospective postulants is cynical and without faith or hope. I would request that you revisit that advice, put Christ in the middle of it, and see what you come up with.
This is reality: Our parish has VBS this week. A male VBS teacher (age 25) asked me to step into the men’s room to witness as he helped a little boy wash his hands. Sad — but that’s what we have to do these days –never be alone with a child.
#6, the problem is that Christ(not by HIS choice) is often not in the middle of allegedly Christian churches.
At 63, you may have grown kids–I don’t, and some of them have special needs. Right, wrong, or indifferent I am past the priesthood as some sort of a “higher reward” or “call” sort of thing. Utter loss of livelihood, due to no more than others’ sociopathic, vindictive falsehoods, is enough to make anyone “cynical”. The daily anxiety that some of my friends live with, in fear of a or the next false accusation rearing its ugly head, is no picnic.
Faith and hope are pretty tough when you’ve had to live the worry of the next meal in your kids’ bellies, and you’ve never done anything to anybody.
And maybe a cynic is no more than an experienced realist with a bigger mouth. This is obviously the “mile in another’s moccasins” sort of thing.
#8, I was raised in a rectory, so I do understand what happens in the priesthood. I also do have grown children, one of whom is and always has been legally blind and very different looking from other kids and people. So, while I have not walked in your shoes, I do understand some of your frustration. All I can say to you is that you are in my prayers and, I hope, hose of all who read this thread. Peace and blessings to you.
Thank you for the prayers. But, it’s not just “frustration”, it’s “reality” and being appalled at the behavior of those who call themselves Christian.
I have no illusions re: the “brokenness of humanity”…what I find ridiculous is all the humans who don’t care to be any LESS broken, and make no efforts on that score, despite whatever they hear or read in church or the Scriptures. Like “The Great Divorce”, where so many of the subjects said, basically, “oh, forget it; I’ll just choose the grey place”…
When it comes to ministry, it’s not too hard to see why so many monastics chose the cell or the desert.
I appreciate the prayers; right back at you. But I’m also a “one foot in front of the other” sort of person. Global prayers for humanity might also be well-said, well-taken, and well-used.
Cheers and thanks for the feedback.
🙂