They then of course chose the answer that supported there belief and even responded claiming it was sad we Catholics did not face up to it.So i did a quick search and found this article and see if you agree??
Making your church safe for children
(Published by Disciples Today, an online publication of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ, April 2002)
When you attend church this Sunday, take a look around at the people in your congregation. For every five women and eight men in your church, statistics show one woman and one man were sexually abused by the time they were 12. The majority of these people knew the person who abused them.
Since congregations are microcosms of our society, we can’t ignore that sexual abuse and pedophilia can occur within a congregation. With media attention focused on the Catholic Church and allegations of clergy sexual misconduct shrouded in years of secrecy, be aware that the problem is not confined to the Catholic Church. Nor is the crime of pedophilia related to celibacy.
"It’s in every denomination," said Carol Q. Cosby, retired director for Social Action Networks in Disciples Home Missions, "including the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)."
Late last year, Patsie Sweeden, regional minister, Christian Church in Kansas, learned that a former associate pastor and youth director from the Kansas Region had reportedly abused at least six young boys between 1979 and 1981. The pastor was serving in the Mid-America region at the time the abuse was reported to the Kansas regional office.
"When [the Mid-America] interim regional minister became aware of the situation, he acted on it immediately," said Sweeden. "We had excellent cooperation across regional lines, we all exited a horrible situation feeling like a process had worked well." Sweeden said the pastor’s standing in the denomination had been removed meaning he no longer had access to the relocation system of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and could not function as a pastor in the denomination. The legal system has acted on this situation as well.
While Disciples have no central office to collect statistics on sexual abuse cases related to pastors, according to Cosby, United Church of Christ denominational officials report that during the past decade, credentials are stripped from a minister, on average, once every two weeks. Furthermore, the majority of cases were related to "some form of sexual misconduct," including pedophilia. (http://www.cpsdv.org/Articles/UCC_Response.htm)
And a 1997 article in Christianity Today reports clergy are not the only offenders in a church. A 1996 profile in the Church Law and Tax Report concludes "volunteer workers are the most frequent abusers, constituting half of all sexual misconduct offenses in churches." (http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/7tb/7tb090.html)
So who will protect the children? According to Father John Heagle of Therapy and Renewal Services, "In a community, not all of us are guilty, but all of us are responsible." So what can we do?
"There are some basic things every congregation needs to do to keep children safe," said Kaye Edwards, director of Family and Children’s Ministries in Disciples Home Missions. "We cannot assume that abuse is not going to happen simply because we are a Christian community."
Edwards added that congregations should consider the following:
Evaluate your building;
Raise awareness and educate members of your congregation;
Appoint a task force to develop and implement policies and procedures to protect the children and youth of your church;
Screen all paid staff and volunteers who work with children and youth;
Hold regular trainings for all paid staff and volunteers who work with children and youth.
Protecting our children against sexual abuse is one of the most important things we can do as a church community. Before you leave your church this Sunday, take another look around, this time at the children in your congregation. Then pray for them … and act to make your congregation a safe place for those children.
No i did not miss the point. But you apparrently have.You all act like the Catholic Church is the only ones who covered up such evil behavior and that is the point this article was making.It look’s as if were more than willing to admit it but you Protestants are still in denial..
Looks like no one read the article but then again that does not surprise me as all you anti Catholic’s would not accept any thing that just might prove your thinking is misguided.Hate has it’s own way of destroying those who folow it being as it’s one of Satan’s better weapons at decieving and blinding.
I read the article.
I used to belong in the Disciples of Christ congregation. Some great People. Looks like they are being pro-active about the issue instead of pretending it is not there.
The Catholics came late to the game, but now that Catholics have addressed it, other congregations should also and adopt the changes that the Catholic Church has made.
Background checks for Everyone that works with kids as well as a facility check and rules about being alone with kids.
google Catholic Virtus training.
Be careful, our Protestant Brothers and sisters, it is happening there right now, failure to act pro-actively will hurt you also.
