Child abuse royal commission: Justice McClellan warns churches to change or risk illegitimacy

by OrphanCrow 6 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse

• 

  OrphanCrow

  Child abuse royal commission: Justice McClellan warns churches to change or risk illegitimacy

  
  Every major Australian church has been cautioned to better protect children or risk illegitimacy.
  In a speech to the National Council of Churches, the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse chairman Justice Peter McClellan urged religious leaders to act on his recommendations.
  "What we can be certain of is that any institution which does not acknowledge past wrongs and the need for change will lose the confidence of Australians," he said via a recorded video.

  read more and watch video of speech (26.02 long) at link:

  http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-16/justice-mcclellan-warns-churches-to-change-or-risk-illegitimacy/8529324

  *thank you to reddit poster snuffinhuffin for this quote:

  at 16:34:

  ""The majority of the allegations we have received, have emerged from faith-based institutions. This inevitably raises the question, why? Why is it that in institutions which proclaim faith in god, and embrace the highest ethical and moral principles, so many children have been abused? Why do some people who proclaim their faith, and have accepted a life of religious endeavor, breach their obligations to children? Is there something in either the structure, culture or personal qualities of members of the churches and other religious bodies, whether lay or ordained, that gives them such a prominent place amongst defenders?"
• 

  TheWonderofYou

  I already thought the storm moves off and calms down. The commisson would shake its head and find other plenty of work to do. I didnt anticipate this appell to yield to reason.
• 

  Iown Mylife

  What a great statement from Peter McClellan! I appreciate him very much.

  How fantastic is the internet, to be able to see these things from around the world.
• 

  Listener

  Justice McClellan was addressing the National Council of Churches and the transcript can be found on the ARC Child Abuse website.
  
  They have proposed that the redress scheme involve a number of aspects. It's not just monetarily but requires an active role by the organization in apologizing -

  ---

  http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/media-centre/speeches/safe-as-churches.aspx
  

  We said appropriate redress should include three elements:
  A direct personal response by the institution, including an apology, an opportunity for the survivor to meet with a senior representative of the institution and an assurance as to the steps the institution has taken, or will take, to protect against further abuse.
  Access to therapeutic counselling and psychological care as needed throughout a survivor’s life.
  Modest monetary payments as a tangible means of recognising the wrong survivors have suffered

  Unfortuantely it looks like the redress scheme will be voluntary.

  1. On 4 November 2016 the Minister for Social Services, Christian Porter, announced the establishment of the Commonwealth Redress Scheme. In that announcement Minister Porter said that ‘any state, any territory, any church, any charity, who has responsibility in this area will be able to opt-in to the scheme’. Institutions would opt-in on the basis that they fund the cost of their own eligible redress claims.

     
     
     
• 

  zeb

  I haven't seen the address as yet. But as he addressed the CoC its a fair bet one group was not represented.....
  

  "Institutions would opt-in on the basis that they fund the cost of their own eligible redress claims." Lets see where this goes from here.
• 

  OrphanCrow

  Oops. I think the last word in the quote should be 'offenders' rather than 'defenders'.

  The questions that Justice McClellan raises are worth thinking about.

  What is it about a belief in God that fosters so much abuse of the child?

  Is religion/God abusive to begin with?

  Do those who give up their personal power to a god turn around and act out their need for power on those who are the most vulnerable? Does submission to a divine power create a need for the power that an abusive act against a child would give a person?

  Divine power appears to be a perversion of power.
• 

  TheWonderofYou

  OrphanCrow:

  Do those who give up their personal power to a god turn around and act out their need for power on those who are the most vulnerable? ...Divine power appears to be a perversion of power.

  Certainly a combination of several special conditions in the congregation of JW.

  Reminds of the dicussion on this forum lately - in which you gave a good comment too about a perverted POWER and perverted FEAR-atmosphere - started by flipper about "WTS creating atmosphere which spawns child abuse in congregations". Some citations her and much more on this challenging thread:

  https://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/5450380668305408/wt-society-creates-atmosphere-which-spawns-child-abuse-congregations

  flipper: Then it becomes even more dangerous once one of these predators gets appointed to a power position of elder in a congregation as other JW's are even more intimidated by the power this elder wields and possesses. So if anyone comes out with accusations of child abuse towards an elder- the JW's are trained to doubt the validity of the child abuse charges- because THEY are told " Oh no ! Brother so and so is SPIRITUAL - he wouldn't molest children - he's an elder, or a pioneer ! " You see my point. JW's minds are conditioned to trust too much and give most fellow JW's , especially elders and the GB the benefit of any doubt.

  simon: Yes, they are guilty not of the abuse (unless they knew about it and covered it up) but because they create the perfect environment for such abuse and know that they do so.

  They put protection of their own position and power and growth of the organization ahead of welfare of the children and for that they are guilty.

  LongHairgal: The reason for ALL this is because the Witness religion tries to break down personal boundaries and attempts to erode people's natural instinct of self-preservation. This is done gradually.#
  

  
  flipper: "SIMON- Very true. WT leaders knowingly put children in danger in order to promote position, power, growth of the organization, and financial wealth of the WT organization while throwing children's welfare to the wind. Very sick."

  crow:

  And then throw in all the sexual restrictions. The WTS is focused on controlling sexual behavior. Children are given inappropriate information about sex. So are adults.

  Then there is the issue of power. Power is woven into the WT structure. Power at the top and filtered down, each rung down with less and less power. Until it stops at the man on the bottom. Women and children are below any level of power. The problem is that it is only an illusion of power. Those men who are given their power from above the ladder, know that they don't really have any. They know, deep inside, that the power they have been given is fake. They know they are powerless. That is reinforced every time they open their mail and get yet another BOE letter telling them in detail what to do. That isn't power and they know it.

  A person's self empowerment is critical to emotional and psychological health. It is imprinted in our genes. We must have power to survive. A cult member does not have personal power. They only have the power of the cult. They have none of their own. And they are terrified of the One who has the most power of all - Jehovah.

  But, a human being's need for power is fundamental to their nature - each and every one of us must have it in order to feel like we will survive. So, all those powerless people inside the WT's made-up religion, have to, and they will, seek power somewhere. And where better to find power than to take it from those who have no way of protecting their own? From the children. The powerless steal the children's power. Because they can. And because they don't know how to be powerful by themselves - their power has been stolen by the WTS. They have given their power to the cult.