Donald Reece | End the paedophilia propaganda

'Why is Peter Espeut so anal?' (Gleaner, May 2, 2018) was a very provocative headline to an article that seems to produce more heat than facts, particularly when the author, Maurice Tomlinson, gay activist and attorney-at-law, dismisses the teaching authority of the Catholic Church, or of any other church, as a matter of fact, when his hot button is touched, namely, LGBT and its accompanying lifestyle.

What the Church teaches is one thing. The teaching of the truth about human sexuality and marriage between one man and one woman, according to the plan of God, is not proved false by the admittedly awful witness by her priests or congregants. Weakness or perverse behaviour on the part of the Church's practitioners must be seen as just that: the priest's inability (paedophilia is an addiction) to measure up to the Church's teaching or the priest's deliberate immoral departure from his Church's teaching. In either case, such priests should face the full brunt of the law. No question about that!

Where the author climbs out on a limb without any credible support is when he says, "The moral authority of the Catholic Church to speak about protecting children is certainly tainted in light of the legion of paedophile priests who (sic) the Church protected for centuries."

If the author had done some research, he would have seen that "the legion" is of his own seemingly biased understanding of the sickness that is no respecter of denomination, vocation, careers or state in life (celibate or married).

The following quote from a reputable magazine, Free Crisis featuring professors and other creditable researchers should enlighten us all. To the myth that is prevalent in Jamaica, namely, that Catholic priests are more likely to be paedophilic than other groups of men, here is what the research reveals:

No evidence

"This is just plain false. There's absolutely no evidence that priests are more likely to abuse children than are other groups of men. The use and abuse of children as objects for the sexual gratification of adults is epidemic in all classes, professions, religions, and ethnic communities across the globe, as figures on child pornography, incest, and child prostitution make abundantly clear.

"Paedophilia (the sexual abuse of a prepubescent child) among priests is extremely rare, affecting only 0.3 per cent of the entire population of clergy. This figure, cited in the book Pedophiles and Priests by non-Catholic scholar Philip Jenkins is from the most comprehensive study to date, which found that only one out of 2,252 priests considered over a 30-year period was afflicted with paedophilia.

In the recent Boston scandal, only four of the more than 80 priests labelled by the media as paedophiles are actually guilty of molesting young children. (Updated information by the editor: In a recent interview (July 2014), Pope Francis said that two per cent of clergy in the Catholic Church are paedophiles, information the Pope said he received from advisers).

"In the wake of the current crisis in the Church, other religious denominations and non-religious institutions have admitted to having similar problems with both paedophilia and ephebophilia among the ranks of their clergy. There's no evidence that Catholic prelates are more likely to be paedophiles than Protestant ministers, Jewish leaders, physicians, or any other institution in which adults are in a position of authority and power over children."

Homophobia and anti-Catholicism, though not bedfellows, are realities in Jamaica and must be avoided by all, especially Christians of whatever persuasion and those who, by their profession and learning, ought to know better.

However, when the Church is faithful to its Master's mandate and makes a proclamation consistent with scripture, it is oftentimes misinterpreted as being homophobic. The Church must love members of the LGBT community - even as the Church must love the criminal who is wreaking havoc in our society - but this love (wanting the best for the other) does not mean agreement with another's conviction of his/her way of life.

Hence, if you are waiting for the Church to sing 'praise the Lord' and 'Alleluia' to LGBT activities, then, as the Jamaican saying goes, "Until Jesus comes!"

- Donald J. Reece is archbishop emeritus of Kingston and acting pastor of St Richard's Catholic Church. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.