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What causes the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) to hide the problem of pedophile priests? [View all]
My opinion, based on my own reading, is that it is a combination of factors.
There is research into the fact that members of an institution will often cover up illegalities by fellow members of their particular institution.
It does not matter if the institution is a religious group, or branches of the military, or scouting organizations, or show business, or schools, or businesses. The tendency to hide and accept criminal behavior that should be exposed is common to all of these groupings.
Here are only a few examples. Many more are easily discovered.
1) After All This Time, the Military Is Continuing to Hide Its Rape Problem
This comes on the heels of another disturbing expose about the mishandling of sexual assault cases at the Air Force Academy. Most disturbing was the revelation that mental health officials appeared to fabricate records to justify spurious diagnosis of personality disorders to damage and discredit victims. While some important reforms have been made in the five years since the sexual assault scandals at Lackland Air Force Base, the story shows the limits of that progress and the lengths that commands will go to bury rape charges and avoid public scrutiny.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2017/10/05/after-all-this-time-the-military-is-continuing-to-hide-its-rape-problem/
2) Boy Scout files reveal long history of child sex abuse cases
Since at least 1919, the Boy Scouts has maintained the internal files to keep suspected pedophiles from re-entering the organization. But in a number of cases, the files show, the organization failed to take proper steps in suspected cases of abuse.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-10-18/business/sns-rt-us-usa-boyscouts-abusebre89h0zf-20121018_1_abuse-cases-boy-scouts-files-show
3) Schools failing to protect students from sexual abuse by school personnel, federal report says
Hampered by inadequate access to employee background information, school districts unwittingly hire teachers and staff accused of sexually abusing students in other districts and states, the report said. With little training on how to recognize early signs of predatory behavior, school employees don’t always pay attention to a colleague who is “grooming” a student for sexual abuse with inappropriate attention. And some school districts quietly dismiss teachers accused of potential child sexual abuse, without alerting future employers or seeking to revoke teaching credentials, the report said.
https://edsource.org/2014/schools-failing-to-protect-students-from-sexual-abuse-by-school-personnel-federal-report-says/57023
Child abuse in the US
It's hard to imagine someone intentionally hurting a child. Yet nearly 1 million children are abused every year just in the United States alone. And these are only the reported incidents of child abuse — many more cases are unreported and undetected, often because children are afraid to tell somebody who can help.
Most of the time, kids know their abusers and the abuse happens in the home. This makes it difficult for kids to speak up. They may feel trapped by the affection they feel for their abusers or fearful of the power the abusers have over them — so they stay silent. That's why it's especially important to be able to recognize the signs of child abuse….
It would be simpler if all child abusers followed a pattern and were easy to recognize. The truth is that child abusers come from all walks of life. They can be parents, other family members, teachers, coaches, and family friends. Virtually anyone who has access to a child is in a position to mistreat the child. Fortunately, the vast majority of people don't.
Most of the time, kids know their abusers and the abuse happens in the home. This makes it difficult for kids to speak up. They may feel trapped by the affection they feel for their abusers or fearful of the power the abusers have over them — so they stay silent. That's why it's especially important to be able to recognize the signs of child abuse….
It would be simpler if all child abusers followed a pattern and were easy to recognize. The truth is that child abusers come from all walks of life. They can be parents, other family members, teachers, coaches, and family friends. Virtually anyone who has access to a child is in a position to mistreat the child. Fortunately, the vast majority of people don't.
https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/child-abuse.html
Confronting Child Sexual Abuse Statistics All Parents Need to Know
2. 95 percent of sexually abused children will be abused by someone they know and trust (NAPCAN 2009).
3. Of those molesting a child under six, 50 percent were family members. Family members also accounted for 23 percent of those abusing children 12 to 17 years (Snyder, 2000).
5. Males made up 90 percent of adult child sexual assault perpetrators, while 3.9 percent of perpetrators were female, with a further 6 percent classified as ’unknown gender’ (McCloskey & Raphael, 2005).
3. Of those molesting a child under six, 50 percent were family members. Family members also accounted for 23 percent of those abusing children 12 to 17 years (Snyder, 2000).
5. Males made up 90 percent of adult child sexual assault perpetrators, while 3.9 percent of perpetrators were female, with a further 6 percent classified as ’unknown gender’ (McCloskey & Raphael, 2005).
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/12-confronting-statistics-on-child-sexual-abuse_us_587dab01e4b0740488c3de49
Note: I strongly suggest reading the entire article outlining the other factors.
My thoughts on the issue:
Looking at the last entry, dealing with sexual abuse of a minor, we see that 95% of children are abused by someone that they know, and that 50% of those who molest a young child are family members.
We know that sexualized violence is a human trait.
We know that those who commit sexualized violence are predators.
We know that predators will be found where the potential victims are found. A deer hunter does not hunt for deer in an urban area. The hunter goes where the deer are to be found. And these predators are on the hunt for their victims, so it makes sense that they will be found wherever there are victims.
In the case of the RCC, we have a male priesthood, and if males make up 90% of those who sexually abuse children, it stands to reason that in a predominantly male group, the likelihood of finding predators is apparent.
Again, in the case of the RCC, we have a very hierarchical institution, and given the frequency with which institutions tend to protect their own, we can understand, but we cannot excuse, why the RCC felt it was necessary to close ranks around their offenders.
We also know, as I have pointed out by linking to my posts here, that RCC Canon Law was, and remains, written to keep child abuse “in house”, in the RCC itself.
A similar problem can be found in the military, where Commanders have often hidden sex crimes committed under their command.
A similar problem can be found in the police forces, where some officers obviously have an “us versus them” mentality when they cover for their own.
Almost as if all of these various groupings function somewhat like a tribe, where the interests of tribe members override other interests.
My personal conclusion:
Unfortunately, sexual abuse is a human trait. A certain percentage of humans will abuse others if they can do so. This does not excuse the abuse, nor does it excuse the even more egregious act of covering up sexual abuse.
In my view, the cover up is definitely worse than the crime.
Finally, as I pointed out here and elsewhere, there can be no excusing sexual violence. Sexualized violence is primarily violence and aggression, and we all, as individuals and as members of institutions, have an obligation to expose it when we find it.
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