The Rev. Thomas Doyle, United States Air Force Chaplain, argues that the recent sex scandal in the Catholic Church is in fact a centuries-old problem that has only become publicized within the past few years.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests sponsored a lecture and panel discussion, concerning the issue of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church on Monday evening in Nunemaker Auditorium. Doyle led the lecture, entitled “Clericalism and the Abuse of Power in the Sexual Abuse Crisis in the Catholic Church.”

Doyle explained the church’s situation not as a crisis, which is confronted, dealt with and overcome, but as a disease, a legacy and a phenomenon.

“I had to accept the fact that this problem is corruption and abuse of power at the top,” Doyle said. “There’s much more to this epidemic than abusive clergy.”

Others on the panel included Barbara Blaine, sexual abuse survivor and president of SNAP, Jason Berry, local journalist and author, Robert Scamardo, sexual abuse survivor and former attorney for the Archdiocese of Houston-Galveston and Peggy Thorp, co-founder of Voice of The Faithful. The audience consisted of mainly Catholic adults and senior citizens, and around 15 audience members stood and were recognized as survivors of sexual abuse by a priest or nun in the Church.

The root cause of the abuse, according to Doyle, is the “myth of clericalism” and the “myth of mandatory celibacy.” He said clericalism is the arrogant abuse of power by individuals with spiritual authority in the Church in order to sexually exploit vulnerable individuals.

“The legacy has always been there,” Doyle said. “It is part of our life.”

The happenings of sexual abuse go as far back as the second and third centuries, according to Doyle.

He said that from 1760 to 1840, during the Spanish Inquisition, there were 3,750 cases reported in Spain of sexual abuse, including incidents in which priests solicited sex in the confessional. Only recently has the problem been exposed to the public.

“He [Doyle] lost his job at the Vatican Embassy because he was a whistle-blower,” Jason Berry said.

Berry wrote an article in the National Catholic Reporter, which was later read by Barbara Blaine, about the first sexual abuse lawsuit against the Catholic Church.

The lawsuit cited abuse of alter boys in Lafayette, La., in 1984.

“I was intrigued about the cover-up,” Berry said. “[It was] not a story of one sick man; it was a story of politics and power.”

Peggy Thorp said all Catholics should demand “accountability, awareness and action” from the Catholic Church. She also encouraged Catholics to support the survivors and help bring about change in the Church through petitions and membership in organizations, such as VOTF.

“We are obliged to expect justice,” Thorp said.

Barbara Blaine experienced firsthand the injustice of sexual abuse in the Church.

At the age of 13, when she was still living with her family in Toledo, Ohio, Blaine was molested repeatedly by a priest in the diocese.

While working in Chicago, Blaine was told by the Bishop and Provincial in Toledo that the priest was being monitored at the hospital he worked.

However, Blaine discovered that her perpetrator was not in fact being monitored, nor were his colleagues even aware of his illegal actions.

Blaine was invited to be a guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show, where she revealed the name of her abuser, and shortly thereafter, he was removed from his position.

“I encourage you to become aware [of the abuse]” Blaine said. “Demand that bishops release the names of all the perpetrators.”

On Feb. 27, the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York is expected to release an audit of all the Catholic dioceses in the United States on the extent and causes of sexual abuse by clergy in the Catholic Church.

CNN recently reported that the study found 4,450 priests have been accused since 1950 of sexually abusing minors. According to Blaine, 50 victims of sexual abuse by a clergy member have committed suicide.

While attorney for the Archdioceses in Galveston, Robert Scamardo came forward and revealed the priests who sexually abused him as a teenager in Austin, Texas.

Scamardo resigned soon after and learned that both his perpetrators were still working for the Catholic Church. Loopholes in the law prevented him from bringing his abusers to justice.

“The statute of limitation has a very narrow window of time [to report sexual abuse],” Scamardo said.

Whether the charge is pedophilia, sexual abuse of a minor, or pornography, the panel agreed that the problem was a deep-seated legacy in the Church.

Naomi King can be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].