Unusually I got into a discussion of religious ethics at an outdoor gathering on Saturday night and it gradually ground down to become a discussion, mainly guided by two females, on the proposition that the Roman Catholic Church, regardless of the laws of the country in which they are operating, is largely if not, in certain countries, totally above the laws of those countries.
As I saw this discussion started out in a general discussion on the standards observed by clerics as observed by those at the gathering.
It was noted that if a nun acted in a way that could be described as 'assault' or even 'rape' and an accusation made the accused would just quietly disappear until any legal investigation died down and then appear in another jurisdiction.
The same applied to some of the males who had similar experiences with male clergy.
I have seen items on this Forum relating to Bishops and above being moved to different countries but the above were moved within the same country, but to another are covered by a different, such as County in the UK, police force.
I was largely excluded from making comments as, one, I never actually suffered from such activity by a clergyman, and two, I am now Pagan and thus disqualified. I was not upset by this as it allowed me to just listen and the final judgment was that in the vast majority of cases known to the group, no legal action had ever been taken against an accused priest or nun, they had just moved on, often to promotion.
One member of the group suggested that the clergy appeared to be able to claim immunity from prosecution purely on the grounds of being clergy.
From personal experience in Pagan circles, it was always a rigid rule that no one, male or female was ever admitted to a Coven before their 18th birthday, a Birth Certificate needing to be produced as proof and, where the High Priest or High Priestess had any doubts about the Birth Certificate relating to the person presenting it, enquiries would be made with the parents.
This was enforced, reluctantly, as a result of several cases of High Priests who demanded sex activity from young women attempting to join covens during to Sixties and Seventies when the number of both Covens and Coveners rocketed which caused complaints against Covens that did not act in this way.
The Forum's comments are requested and welcomed - pro or con!!
Owlswing
)O(
Bright Blessings, Love and Light to all!
