So the papers are a flutter with news of yet another Catholic bishop (Walter Mixa), a personal friend of Pope Benedict XVI (aka B-16), flogging children at an orphanage in Germany while yelling: “Satan is in you and I must drive him out.”
(Satan was in someone, sweetheart, but I’m not sure it was the children.)
This is hot on the heels of B-16 being forced to finally face the child sex abuse scandals within the Catholic Church because latest news broke that they happened in Germany which, as we all know, is his Fatherland.
But that got me thinking. What about Asia? People have told me of Catholic brothers in boarding schools coming to the dormitory a few nights a week and calling for boys. Later, those boys would return to their beds crying and refusing to talk to anyone. What do you think went on? A midnight prayer ritual?
Or nuns who would severely beat children at Catholic boarding schools for holding hands, calling the small girls “filthy”. No projection going on there, eh Sister?
We already know that the venerable Ratzinger, when he was only the power behind the Throne (rather than the Ray Ban-sporting, Ferrari-blessing Throne itself) used to move paedophile priests from one parish to another to avoid lynching from outraged parents. And yet Asia has been deathly quiet on this. It makes no sense. Although, once you spend some cycles on it, you’d realise that Asia is actually the perfect place to send paedophile priests.
One. You have a huge population of people used to living under strictly hierarchical, totalitarian systems. (Democracy wasn’t invented in Japan, know what I’m saying?)
Two. You have a huge emphasis on belief. Belief in the Emperor/King/Sultan, as well as all the religions running around. The wrapper on my Gardenia brand loaf of bread, for Chrissakes, says that the first National Principle of Malaysia is:
Kepercayaan Kepada Tuhan (aka “Belief in God”)
That’s even before the principle of law or loyalty to the country. And that’s on my damn bread wrapper!
Three. You have populations of different religions all over the place. What are you going to do if you find that your priest has been playing touchy-feely with your child? Go to another church? How can you when there are not so many around? (I’m excluding the Philippines here.) There are Buddhist temples closer to you than the church you normally attend. You can change religions but who’s to say one is going to treat you/your child better than another, and what will your friends and family say about you jumping ship like that? You can’t be a non-believer. See Point Two above. You are, essentially, trapped.
Four. You won’t be believed. Oh man, you think some populations in Europe are compliant? (Germans, for example.) They’re nothing compared to Asia. When you can be thrown into jail for doing nothing more than commenting on the hypocrisy of a ruler publicly doing something against his religion, you know you’re on shaky ground the minute you try to tell someone that the Emperor’s aide isn’t sporting much in the way of underwear either. The cult of personality is strong in this part of the world, whether we’re talking about God or the latest rich Hindu holy man. You swim against the tide at your peril.
Five. We’re brown, so who cares? Consider this. You’re some white, superior jerk sitting in Vatican City somewhere, and you get told about a paedophile priest. You belong to one of the largest, richest, most private corporations in the world. Money is no object to you. What are you going to do to the priest, especially if one of your trusted bishops doesn’t like him very much? Shift him from County A in England to County B in Ireland? Or, just so he gets the message, send him to the Philippines? The little brown natives are going to be so happy they have a White Man to minister to them (oh, the status!) that they’ll poke their own eyes out with a red-hot poker rather than admit their Pale-skinned Shepherd is ministering to things other than their souls.
The silence around child sex abuse from priests is so deafening in Asia that it’s unnatural. They do it in Europe? In the Americas? But not Asia? Something’s going on and, unfortunately, it’s my personal bet that when the first story breaks of abuse in Asia — as it must — the parishioners will end up looking as culpable as the priest.
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The sad thing is – I think there will turn out to be priest abuse in Asia – and/or – very worryingly – in Africa and South America where there are a lot more vulnerable children, a lot less willingness to question the church and even less attentiveness by the media et al
I really think we aren’t even seeing a tenth of the scandal. In Asia, Africa and South America, there will be far more victims unknown and unspoken for. It gives me chills to think that this could be so mnuch worse than we know
Right, I forgot the media. That won’t be so much an issue here (excluding the Philippines), but could be contributing factor in, as you say, South America and Africa. Good point, Sparky. Now, I’m particularly interested in South America. This is where Liberation theology has taken root. They can talk the talk…but one wonders if they can they walk the walk?
It’s such a terrible issue. I’ve no words for my disgust with the heirarchy, grief for victims and their families, and my personal sense of betrayal when I look at the church’s actions.
It seems that we can’t turn over a rock these days without finding a nasty priest under there…
I want to know why there were so MANY of them in the first place???
I think it’s an unnatural situation to begin with. Of course there are people who don’t feel the need for intimate relationships, but I feel this is not the case for the majority of men and women. Putting them into environments where basic human needs are severely curtailed means that their sexuality has to find an outlet somewhere. I wonder if this is, in fact, a variation on sex that occurs in prison.
So, they go looking for outlets and pick on the most vulnerable, most easily controlled, section of the community they have any contact with. Do we find such heinous cases of child sex abuse with Anglicans, for example? Their catechism is very similar to RCs but marriage is an option for those not wanting to climb the organised theological career ladder. Someone should do a study.