[Moiraine]

France has got the same kind of pedophilia cases. I would add that they does not all concern priests. It seems that people who are, could we say, sexually ill or umbalanced, are attracted to organizations that allow them to be in close relation with children. That would be priesthood, but also teaching and children care. And in all the cases that have showed up in France, it seems that the related organization (that is, either the Church, or the National Education, or the Nation organization for children care) have reacted the same way until recently, that is : take the offender out of the way and give him a new post somewhere else, and above all avoid scandal. It seems it's only now that people are realizing that it's not a matter of isolated cases, but a serious global problem that has to be dealt with.

Note that I'm not saying here anything against churches or teaching organizations ! Most people wanting to be a priest or a teacher are healthy people wanting to do some good. But I think the churches, as well as the teaching organizations and the organizations for children care, must be aware that the very nature of their trade is likely to attract people for other reasons than the call of God or a teaching vocation, and should detect and refuse such people. Thus, Catholic priests celibacy is probably not the core problem, as civil teachers are allowed to wed, though there are nonetheless pedophilia cases in public teaching as well.

I think that people who can have sex with children, knowing fully that it will ruin the children's lives, are not mentally healthy, and should be detected early and possibly medically treated.

If you look at it that way, what about the appallingly large number of seemingly ordinary people who make trips to countries like Thaïlande so they can have sex with children over there ? Is it that different ?