April 18, 2010

A letter to Catholic bishops about the Church's sexual abuse crisis

In 2002 Dr Fitzgibbons and two other doctors of the Catholic Medical Association wrote a letter to Catholic bishops with their analysis of the sexual abuse crisis. It was a harsh critique of homosexuals in the priesthood:
In treating priests who have engaged in pedophilia and ephebophilia we have observed that these men almost without exception suffered from a denial of sin in their lives... Rejecting the Church's teachings on sexual morality, these men for the most part adopted the utilitarian sexual ethic which the Holy Father so brilliantly critiqued in his book, Love and Responsibility. They came to see their own pleasure as the highest end and used others -- including adolescents and children -- as sexual objects. They consistently refused to examine their consciences, to accept the Church's teachings on moral issues as a guide for their personal actions, or regularly avail themselves of the sacrament of reconciliation. These priests either refused to seek spiritual direction or chose a spiritual director or confessor who openly rebelled against Church teachings on sexuality. Tragically, these mistakes allowed these men to justify their behaviors.

1 comment :

  1. I enjoyed reading the posts on your blog. They are very well written and informative. God bless, Lloyd

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for reading my blog!