VOICE ONE:
Almost sixty-four-million Christians in the United States belongto the Roman Catholic Church. Sexual wrongdoing by clergymen againstchildren has caused a crisis in the Catholic Church. I’m MaryTillotson.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. The Catholic Church is our report today onthe VOA Special English program, THIS IS AMERICA.
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VOICE ONE:
Last month, Roman Catholic Church leaders in the United Statesdeclared a new policy about sexual wrongdoing by clergymen againstchildren. Those priests found guilty of even one incident of sexualabuse of a child would be barred from all public duties connected tothe church. They could no longer take part in the Catholic religiousservice. However, they would continue to be priests.
Almost three-hundred churchleaders approved the new policy at a meeting of the United StatesConference of Catholic Bishops in Dallas, Texas. The bishops alsoapologized to victims of sexual abuse by priests. Several of thesevictims were at the meeting and told about their sexual abuse bypriests.
Pope John Paul is the head of the Roman Catholic Church aroundthe world. Officials in Rome who advise the Pope will now considerthe American bishops’ new policy. If the officials approve, theAmerican bishops will be expected to enforce it.
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In the United States, it is a crime for an adult to have sexualrelations with anyone under the age of eighteen. Hundreds ofCatholic priests have been accused of having sexual relations withchildren.
The priests reportedly abused thousands of boys and young men.Some women have also charged priests with sexual wrongdoing. Some ofthese accusations involve incidents that happened as many as thirtyyears ago.
Roman Catholic priests are banned from marrying. They are notpermitted to have sexual relations of any kind.
VOICE ONE:
For many years, some Catholics have demanded that their bishopstake a strong position against sexually abusive priests. Thesepeople say some bishops have protected guilty priests while failingto protect the children they harmed.
Victims of sexual crimes by priests have repeatedly demandedapologies from the church. They have demanded justice in the courts.American courts have ordered the Roman Catholic Church to paymillions of dollars in damages to victims.
VOICE TWO:
Many American Catholics are not satisfied with the new policydeclared by the bishops. They want priests found guilty of sexualabuse of children to be dismissed as priests. Many Catholics pointto the seriousness of the offense and the harm it has done to youngvictims.
Many American Catholics do not believe the bishops’ policy issevere enough. They made this clear in recent opinion studies. Inone study, two-thirds of Catholics said they did not believe the newpolicy would end abuse of children. In another study, almost ninetypercent wanted guilty priests dismissed from the priesthood. Almostall of the Catholics in this study said they wanted action by PopeJohn Paul. They want the Pope to punish bishops who do not actagainst known abusers.
VOICE ONE:
Roman Catholic bishops govern churches in one-hundred-elevenareas in the United States. One media report says bishops in almostsixty percent of these areas have attempted to hide sex crimes bypriests. In at least several cases, the church paid victims largeamounts of money. The money was meant to keep the victims fromtelling the media about what happened to them.
Reports say some bishops sent guilty priests for treatment bymental health experts. But the bishops did not report the crimes topolice. Then the bishops sent the priests to work in churches inother cities. They did not warn church members about these priests.
Some law-enforcement officials say these bishops should bepunished. They have suggested charging these bishops with aiding acrime.
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Some experts say the church has protected guilty priests becauseit lacks enough priests. The number of Roman Catholic churches inthe United States keeps growing. However, the number of men studyingto be priests has decreased. Almost thirty percent of Roman Catholicchurches do not have a priest serving only one church.
Instead, some priests travel to serve two or more churches.TheCatholic Church does not permit women to become priests. However,men who are not priests can perform some church ceremonies. Thesemen are called deacons. They are permitted to be married. Husbandsand wives, called parish ministers, also may assist in someceremonies.
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Roman Catholicism has a long history in America. The first RomanCatholics were explorers from Europe. The religion was establishedbefore the area became the United States. At times, the Britishcolonies approved anti-Catholic legislation. But Catholics usuallycould observe their religion freely.
During the nineteenth century, many immigrants came to the UnitedStates. Large groups of Catholics came from Germany, Ireland,Austria-Hungary and Poland. Historians say Irish-Americans becamethe most influential Catholics by the beginning of the twentiethcentury. By that time, the Catholic Church in America was becomingincreasingly strong.
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Catholics established their own schools for young children. Theseschools became known for excellent education. The church alsoestablished high schools and colleges. For example, CatholicUniversity opened in Washington, D.C in eighteen-eighty-seven.
Over the years, many Catholic aid groups have assisted millionsof people who are poor, sick or old. These aid groups have helpedpeople of all religions.
Catholics sometimes suffered mistreatment by other Americans. Butas time passed, many Catholics gained important positions. Forexample, Roman Catholics were elected to positions of power in bigcities like New York, Boston, Massachusetts and Chicago, Illinois.In nineteen-sixty, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the first RomanCatholic elected president of the United States.
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American Catholics share beliefs with Roman Catholics around theworld. They believe Jesus Christ established the church. Theybelieve their church has kept and continued his teachings over theyears.
Still, Catholic churches in the United States have establishedsome traditions all their own. For example, some churches use folkand other kinds of music during their masses. Many churches holdspecial dinners, parties and game events for their members. Somehave sports teams for adults as well as children. Committees ofmembers advise the priest about local church administration.
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The activities of Catholic churches in America require manymillions of dollars. Church officials are concerned about gainingenough money for all these activities. This concern has deepenedsince reports of sexual crimes by priests have appeared in themedia. Some Catholics are not giving as much money to their churchas they did in the past.
The crisis also has helped increase debate about two otherissues. For years, some American Catholics have urged that priestsbe permitted to marry. A number of Catholics also say women shouldbe able to become priests.
Those opposed to these proposals say they would violate churchtradition. However, supporters say such changes would help increasethe number of priests and ease the shortage. They also believe thechanges might help prevent sexual offenses by priests. They say thatmost Protestant Christian churches permit their clergy to marry.
In addition, a number of Protestant churches have female priestsor ministers. These churches report far fewer cases of sexual abuseby clergy than the Catholic Church.
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In recent public opinion studies, few Catholics say the crisisabout priests would cause them to leave the church. Loyal AmericanCatholics praise the rich spiritual life they gain from their churchand its religious service, the mass. However, many Catholics now saythey want more influence in church life. They want church officialsto consider their opinions about important issues.
A high school teacher from the Middle West has been active in hisCatholic church for twenty years. He says members want bishops tocontinue to advise them in spiritual life. But he believes theunquestioned leadership by the bishops is over.
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VOICE TWO:
This program was written by Jerilyn Watson. It was produced byGeorge Grow. I’m Steve Ember.
VOICE ONE:
And I’m Mary Tillotson. Join us again next week for anotherreport about life in the United States on the VOA Special Englishprogram, THIS IS AMERICA.