Child Abuse, Torture, and Rape: All part of Faith-Based Initiatives

In a story reported widely today, the conclusions of Ireland's Commission to Inquire Into Child Abuse were released. As could be expected, the level of child abuse, torture, and rape in Christian schools in Ireland was found to be astronomically high. The 2,600 page report found that,

The report found that molestation and rape were "endemic" in boys' facilities, chiefly run by the Christian Brothers order, and supervisors pursued policies that increased the danger. Girls supervised by orders of nuns, chiefly the Sisters of Mercy, suffered much less sexual abuse but frequent assaults and humiliation designed to make them feel worthless.

"In some schools a high level of ritualized beating was routine. ... Girls were struck with implements designed to maximize pain and were struck on all parts of the body," the report said. "Personal and family denigration was widespread."

As is typical, the religious institutions are in damage control mode. They are denying the reports and, at the same time, saying that the people who were responsible are long dead:

"But most leaders of religious orders have rejected the allegations as exaggerations and lies, and testified to the commission that any abuses were the responsibility of often long-dead individuals."

However, the 2,600 pages hits like a professional boxer. The conclusion is a firm rebuke of the Christians claims:

"A climate of fear, created by pervasive, excessive and arbitrary punishment, permeated most of the institutions and all those run for boys. Children lived with the daily terror of not knowing where the next beating was coming from," the report concluded.

I have said it before and I will say it again now. Religious institutions are continually given undeserved benefit of the doubt. From deference to religious schools to the concept of "faith-based initiatives" that politicians push upon us, they use their hypnotic spell that they have oh so many people under to grab power and money.

It is time that the concept of "faith-based initiatives" are attached to the negative connotation that they so obviously deserve.



UPDATE: After a technical issue and an absence, I have had to re-post all of my old posts. As a result there will be many posts listed as published today, Dec 3, 2009, that were posted sometime earlier in the year, but I do not know the exact date. this post is one of them.