EXTENSION OF THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR DEFROCKING A PRIEST HAS NO IMPACT ON SURVIVORS OF ABUSE BY CATHOLIC CLERGY

It is more than ironic that Pope Benedict and his public relations advisors have opted to respond to the worldwide sexual abuse crisis within the Catholic Church by extending the time within which action may be taken by Church officials to defrock a priest.  The irony is that this serves only to make the Church "look" good, but does absolutely nothing to respond to the damage suffered by a sexual abuse victim.  Again, it's all about perception and avoidance of scandal, and little to do with helping victims. 

The fact that the Catholic Church would attach any limitation period to the internal process for defrocking a priest who is guilty of molesting a child, in itself speaks volumes of the lack of understanding of the issue.  These perpetrators are dangerous and do not change who they are over the passage of time.  If the Church knows it has a problem predator on its hands,  how could it possibly justify allowing a priest to continue with faculties (even if he is removed from ministry) just because ten or twenty years has lapsed from the time a particular victim was assaulted.   

The Vatican's announcement of its response to the scourge of child sex abuse by its clergy and other religious institutions is woefully inadequate and puts mere window dressing on a very deep and insidious problem.  It reflects a complete lack of understanding of the disease of pedophilia and ephebophilia.  The passage of time does not "cure" these incurable impulses.  People inflicted with these diseases have no business working in environments where they have access to children or teenagers.  Further, once a child has been sexually abused, their psychosocial development is derailed and they even suffer from measurable cognitive damage.   The symptoms often do not emerge until adulthood and they certainly lack the maturity to grapple with these problems until much later in their adult lives. 

Statutes of limitations, whether civil, criminal or church made, that do not account for the longevity of the injuries suffered by the innocent child victims, and the incurable nature of the disease of the abuser, ignore reality and serve only one purpose: to protect the abuser and those who protect him/her.