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	Some Priests Can't Handle Power By Bob Garon ABS-CBN [Philippines] Downloaded February 25, 2004 The priests who will repeatedly cross into the forbidden zone to satisfy his perceived needs, is often a man with deep-seated insecurities. His misconduct is the result of sexual and power needs that he cannot control. He might have some unresolved sexual matters. And, yes, he might be addicted to sex and powerless to keep his addiction in check. The priests who will repeatedly cross into the forbidden zone to satisfy his perceived needs, is often a man with deep-seated insecurities. His misconduct is the result of sexual and power needs that he cannot control. He might have some unresolved sexual matters. And, yes, he might be addicted to sex and powerless to keep his addiction in check. There are some priests who cannot handle the power that is vested in them. Because of their insecurities, power goes to their heads and they abuse in many ways. They have this feeling of entitlement. They believe that they have the right to cross into the forbidden zone. Of course this is twisted thinking, but the abuse of power not only corrupts, it distorts one?s thinking. He plunges into materialism. If he comes from a very poor family and has suffered deprivation in the past, the temptation to over?indulge is great. This is why some priests live way beyond the people they serve and scandalize them with their inappropriate lifestyle. Priests who live the high life have this feeling of entitlement. When they get to his level, the I-can-do-no-wrong syndrome isn?t far behind. The priests now can almost feel the power rushing through his veins and soon to his head. He feels like a minigod who can do no wrong. What he doesn?t know is that the seeds of his destruction have been sown and it is only a matter of time before he falls. Then there is the priest who is at the other extreme. He feels totally inadequate be? cause of very low self-esteem. There is a growing feeling that he is incapable of functioning well as a priest or as a man. He is vulnerable to relationships with those even more vulnerable and needy than he is. The temptation to get into relationships that provide gratification is great since he finds little meaning in his ministry. It is this dryness of gratification. Usually, he finds it in the embrace of a woman, or in his reflection in a glass of alcohol, or both. The victims of his power plays will most often be persons closely associated with the church. People who have a deep respect for him are easy targets of his abuse and, unless he is a man of god, a man with a solid code of ethics, they will fall victims of his abuse of power. Women who come to him with broken hearts, separated women, and those who need a shoulder to cry on will be his victims. If he wasn?t in his position of power, he would not be able to do his thing, but he is and he does. The priest who is alone in his parish must have a solid spirituality and a healthy sense of self if he is to keep himself from falling. He must be a man of substance who has been well trained and who has responded to that training with a rock-solid commitment to God and to his vocation of service to the people of God.
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