PENNSYLVANIA
Daily Times
Published: Monday, May 21, 2012
There was a time when becoming a Roman Catholic priest was considered a noble calling.
Many would still consider it such, but they would also realize it is not an easy one.
For the last decade, the Roman Catholic Church in the United States and Europe has been stalked by hundreds of allegations of clerical sexual abuse.
In 2002, when a Boston priest was convicted of sexually molesting a child, the scandal broke nationwide. The accusations against priests flew so fast and furiously, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops was forced to develop a Charter for the Protection of Children & Young People.
One of their most important provisos was that church officials must turn over any allegations of sexual abuse of minors by priests to civil authorities, something they failed to do previously resulting in the perpetuation of pedophile priests at parishes and in the general public.
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