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Child Abuse in the Catholic Church

             In recent years, an increasing amount of attention has been given to the problem of child sexual abuse in church communities. Most attention has focused on sexual abuse by priests, ministers, and members of religious groups. These people are representatives of the churches. Sexual abuse is perceived as a particularly shocking crime if committed by clergy because of the trust involved. Case after case has emerged in the press of clergy and members of church being charged with sex offences against children. In the Roman Catholic Church there have been over 800 priests that have been removed from ministry as a result of allegations against them. There are 1,400 known insurance claims on record and the Church has paid out over 1 billion dollars in liability with an estimated 500 million dollars pending (Sipe 28) This is not a new trend, some of these cases go back years or even decades. In most cases the offenders have been charged with multiple offences.
             Churches are very vulnerable to the problem of child sexual abuse since they have a large involvement in work with children and young people. There are Sunday Schools, youth groups, church affiliated boys and girls associations, holiday clubs, and church camps. Churches are the largest organized providers of activities for children outside of school offering an enormous amount of opportunities for people to work with children. Most of the youth group work is done by volunteers which are always needed. Teaching in Sunday School or running a youth group requires passion and commitment but no formal training. Anyone who is a member of a church is eligible to volunteer. The majority of people who volunteer to work with children are dedicated and give their time with only the best intentions. However, it is possible that churches attract people with a sexual interest in children. With that not surprising then that churches have a problem with child sexual abuse.


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