As you may have heard, a Pennsylvania grand jury
recently released a report about the child sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church.
They only looked at 6 of the 8 dioceses in the state
and still produced a report
that was more than 1300 pages long
and implicated more than 300 priests and bishops and other Catholic leaders.
Many of them are dead.
Some of the stories were heavily redacted because the priests
are alive and haven't been charged with a crime.
And in some cases, the statute of limitations has long expired.
But this was always about documenting the abuses more than anything else.
When you read this report
and realize it's just one group of priests in one state,
you have to wonder what the stories would look like
if a similar document was produced across the country,
if not the world.
And I want to tell you some of what they found.
Not because it's disturbing, and it is really disturbing,
but because this stuff had been going on for decades.
The church knew about it.
They covered it up.
They transferred priests to different parishes.
They told families they would take care of the problem and never did.
If you are giving money to the Catholic Church, or you attend Mass,
or you even call yourself a Catholic at this point,
you should know what it is you're supporting.
So, here's just a sampling of what was in that report.
And if this is too much to take,
click away now. I mean, this is your warning.
One priest fondled at least 12 different boys by saying he was just
showing them "how to check for cancer."
One priest raped an underage girl,
got her pregnant,
then paid for her abortion.
His bishop later wrote in a letter:
"This is a very difficult time in your life and I realize how upset you are.
I too share your grief."
That letter was addressed to the priest,
not the victim.
One priest admitted to molesting approximately 35 boys,
because sex with girls is "sinful",
but raping boys apparently didn't violate them.
One priest tried having sex with a 17 year-old at a high school he worked at
by saying God wanted them to express love for each other that way.
And when she said God would punish them,
he told her: "There is no hell."
One priest forced a 9-year-old boy to give him a blowjob
then washed his mouth out with holy water
to "purify" him.
There was a priest who dragged a child across a room by his underwear
and beat him with a metal cross.
He eventually quit the priesthood,
but not before receiving a letter of recommendation from the church for his new job
at Disney World.
One priest molested a 12-year-old boy.
That victim is 83 now
and he said he has fought in wars,
but because of what that priest did to him,
he could never hug or kiss his own children who were boys.
He can't shake hands with men to this day.
He can't even see male doctors or dentists.
One priest was known to take pictures in a boys locker room
and maintained a book of crotch shots.
One priest fondled a boy and stuck his finger up the kid's ass.
Then he said to the boy that, if their secret ever got out,
the child and his mother would both burn in hell.
And then he gave the boy a nickel.
One priest raped a 7-year-old in the hospital
just after she had her tonsils removed.
He raped her again when she was 19 and pregnant.
One priest inappropriately touched several little girls
and when confronted about it by his diocese,
he admitted it, adding,
"it was when I was going through a touchy-feely time in my life."
One priest abused an 11-year old girl
wrestling with her on the floor at her family's home when their father wasn't around.
And one time,
when she resisted, he said,
"I like a fighter."
One priest fondled a young boy on a ferris wheel during a church festival.
And the boy couldn't get off the ride, because the priest told the operator to keep the ride going 3 times longer than it should have.
This is just a sample.
It is so much worse than anyone imagined.
And, by the way, 24 hours after that report was released,
do you know what the Vatican said about it?
Nothing.
They didn't even issue a statement.
I would also point out that the grand jury said that the reason these crimes were covered up for so long
is because church leaders appeared to be using,
and I'm quoting,
"a playbook for concealing the truth."
What did that playbook involve?
1) They used euphemisms.
Instead of saying "rape,"
they said "inappropriate contact" or "boundary issues."
2) They didn't investigate these allegations with trained professionals.
Instead they let clergy members ask the victims inadequate questions
before judging their own colleagues.
3) They evaluated priests at church-run "treatment centers."
4) If a priest was removed, they never said why.
They just told the congregation he was on sick leave, or something.
5) They kept providing priests with living expenses regardless of the allegations
There were no real consequences.
6) They transferred the priest if his crime became public knowledge.
7) They never told the police
because they wanted to keep it "in-house."
It is all disturbing.
If you saw that movie Spotlight,
I mean, it was all about this kind of scandal in one large city.
Well, this report was about the scandal covering
most of one state.
And the details are awful.
How many lives did the Catholic Church ruin over the course of decades?
How much trauma did these priests inflict?
You know, and obviously the church has a lot to do in the wake of all these accusations, but
many of the people involved, at least peripherally
with these scandals, are still around and still in the church's hierarchy.
Do you think the Pope is just gonna get rid of everybody?
No.
Nothing will change unless the people who support the church get out.
They need to stop giving the church money.
They need to stop calling themselves Catholic
as if it's something to be proud of.
They need to stop sending their kids to a Catholic school if they can help it.
I mean, you can believe in God without calling yourself a Catholic.
And I think people walking away is the only thing that will push the church to change.
Because you know what didn't pressure the church to prevent these scandals?
The victims. They didn't matter.
My name is Hemant Mehta and I write at FriendlyAtheist.com
What do you want to see a video about?
Let us know in the comments below and we'll be sure to check it out.
And don't forget to subscribe.