Ohio Priest Admits He Impregnated Underage Altar Girl
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Father Henry Christopher Foxhoven ‘s own church in the Diocese of Steubenville told police he admitted to sexual contact with the 17-year-old girl. Foxhoven is 45. He’s been charged with eight counts of sexual battery . News reports indicate that he and the girl both told her parents she was pregnant, though it’s not clear if they also told them about how their “relationship” had gone on for three years .
The diocese immediately suspended Foxhoven from practicing all religious services and barred him from church property .
Investigators executed a search warrant of Foxhoven’s home and found several used condoms and a used pregnancy test with a positive indication …
The state requested a $1 million bond .
Foxhoven is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on Nov. 29 .
To be clear, this was not a sexual “relationship” by any stretch. It was abuse perpetrated by a religious figure in a position of authority over a young altar girl. If the details are accurate, this was a crime.
At least the church recognized the inappropriate situation and reported him to the police. There was no cover up. There was no moving the priest somewhere else. Church officials did exactly what they should’ve done, at least assuming they had no indication of what was going on beforehand. This is how it should always go.
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Investigators executed a search warrant of Foxhoven’s home and found several used condoms and a used pregnancy test with a positive indication…
What a pig. Imagine if you were born into the world under those circumstances.
The vow of celibacy is ridiculous. Might be as ridiculous for a woman (not being one I do not know) but a man who lives his life perpetually 'locked & loaded' would likely not be thinking clearly. One way to cut down on the sexual abuse by priests is to allow them a natural intimate relationship (with an adult partner).
Note: there is no excuse for sexual predators, my comment is about an ill-conceived Catholic tradition. Let the priests and nuns have intimate relationships with other human beings.
Absolutely. The priesthood attracts pedophiles for as obvious a reason as the one that attracts bullies to police forces.
That is not a fair comparison.
The comparison is fair but it has nothing to do with celibacy per se but because certain professions innately attract the wrong kind of people. Pedophiles go where the kids are, bullies go where they can beat up folks.
Some cultures actually neutered their holy men to escape just exactly this problems inevitability. You would think that even thousand of years ago men in power could have foreseen what would ensue if they tried to utterly sexually repress a huge contingent of men. Like that would not end tragically...
... and yet in some cases we seem incapable of learning from the mistakes so clearly shown in history.
"We"?
Human beings in general
Originally, the church did not allow priests to marry because if a divorce occurred, the wife could get possession of church property.
I would have recommended a special contractual clause in which the wife simply did not get possession of church property under divorce. A priestly pre-nuptial.
Importantly, the Pope could correct this with a stroke of his pen.
Back then, there were no prenups or the legalities for clauses.
The church had the power to make almost any rule they sought. Seems to me they could have easily allowed priests (and nuns) to marry and retain church property if the marriage failed.
I can't remember the last time we had an article about a protestant minister impregnating a teenage girl, or a public school teacher for that matter. AND if there are it is never connected to Protestant sects or the public school system as a whole.
Sadly, Newstalkers has been traditionally an anti-Catholic site, particularly with one of the moderators constantly posting anti Catholic articles and even seeding fake news about the Catholic Church.
Your whataboutism and false equivalencies over Catholic Church scandals are evocative of right wing political arguments.
what false equivalency?
look up statistics on the subject
a lot of people are catholic haters
that is why anti-Catholic bigotry is an actual thing
have you ever heard of anti-protestant bigotry?
[deleted]
This has been explained to you many times, but, just like a right winger does over their politics, you simply feign ignorance. Name one school that covered up the rape of a student by a teacher, then moved the rapist teacher to another school because the entire education system was in on the coverup. The Catholic Church has institutionalized child rape. The Church has been raping children with impunity for centuries which is why it's having such a hard time stopping and coming clean about it.
Teacher sex cases in U. S. public schools unreported ...
Apr 09, 2010 · Even so, media outlets and public officials remain tight-lipped, cover-up allegations, and fight disclosure. Teacher sex cases in U. S. public schools unreported, unpunished Email
An epidemic of child sex abuse in our public schools - The ...
Mar 01, 2015 · An epidemic of child sex abuse in our public schools March 1, 2015 Joelle Casteix armored child , Child safety , Clergy Abuse Crisis , LAUSD , Parenting There’s a banner that hangs outside of Costa Mesa’s (California) Whittier Elementary School.
Teachers who sexually abuse students still find classroom jobs
Dec 22, 2016 · Teachers who sexually abuse students still find classroom jobs ... same misconduct at a nearby public school in 2013, when he had a sexual relationship with a student. ... of his sex offender
Sexual Abuse in Public Schools | Disciple of Thecla
Mar 13, 2012 · The mainstream media has refused to report the large numbers of sex abuse cases in public schools . Perhaps because these people seek to hold onto their views of sex , they seek to blame pedophilia upon the celibacy policy of the Catholic clergy.
Suit says (pubklic)school officials covered up sex abuse - CBS News
May 08, 2014 · Suit says school officials covered up sex abuse. Attorney General Patrick Morrisey accuses Mingo County school officials of covering up sexual abuse allegations against two middle school …
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Try again John. There's no doubt that there will be pedophiles wherever there are adults with authority over children, but Lenny summed up the essence of the criminal conspiracy problem with the RCC:
With the RCC that global criminal conspiracy has been going on since at least 306 AD and it's still going on today.
Equally bad is the fact that the RCC is still fighting to limit its own civil liability in these cases. The RCC as an organization seem to have little concern about justice for the victims of pedophile priests and a complicit church hierarchy.
These days, what sane parent would even leave their children unattended with any man of the cloth.
Don't worry John. I'm sure there are plenty of Protestant pedophiles to go around.
John, you know that I’m not biased when it comes to religion. This is seeded from a site that reports these kinds of abuses from every brand of religion, and I seed them all as they come. It’s just a fact that Catholicism produces more of these degenerates than other Judeo Christian religions do. I think it’s the celibacy thing that disadvantages them. Protestants are more apt to cheat on their spouses than diddle a kid, probably because they aren’t repressed to the degree that Catholic priests are.
Priests Commit No More Abuse Than Other Males
Jul 04, 2010 · But in either case, the rate of abuse by Catholic priests is not higher than these national estimates. The public also doesn't realize how "profoundly prevalent" child sexual abuse is, adds Smith.
Catholic priests no guiltier of sex abuse than other clergy
May 25, 2010 · Insurance companies, child advocacy groups and religion scholars say there is no evidence that Catholic clergy are more likely to be involved in sexual misconduct than other clergy or professionals. Yet ongoing civil litigation of decades-old cases against a church with deep pockets keeps the Catholic Church in the headlines.
Priests, celibacy and sex - Religion News Service
Jul 16, 2018 · The church needs a frank discussion of these issues with input from the laity. Sex between a priest and adult can be more than simply a violation of celibacy.
Q&A: Understanding the Priest Scandal | Catholic Answers
Again, "the overwhelming number of cases . . . involved homosexual ephebophilia-in other words, priests sexually attracted to young teenage boys. . . . There was only one founded case of pedophilia, involving a priest-uncle with two six-year-old nieces" (Philip Jenkins, Pedophiles and Priests: Anatomy of a Contemporary Crisis [1996], p. 81).
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Sep 07, 2018 · It found that “ more abuse occurred in the 1970s than any other decade, peaking in 1980.” It showed that the number of cases plummeted in …
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Sex abuse rife in other religions, says Vatican | World ...
Sep 28, 2009 · In the US, churches have paid more than $2bn (£1.25bn) in compensation to victims. In Ireland, reports into clerical sexual abuse have rocked both the Catholic hierarchy and the state.
Six Myths About Clergy Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church ...
Mar 24, 2010 · 4. Clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church can't be blamed on an all-male clergy.
Hahahahaha, Catholic.com failed to mention how many founded cases of pedophilia were committed by a priest outside of the family. It also failed to say how many founded cases of pedophilia was committed by a priest on his nephews.
Sadly, you conveniently overlook the Catholic church has traditonally been a haven for pedophile priest.
www.psychologytoday.com
Six Myths About Clergy Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church
There's more fiction than facts in Catholic clergy sexual abuse discussions.
There are a lot more myths than facts bantered around about clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. Here are six important points that you should know if you are interested in this topic.
1. Catholic clergy aren't more likely to abuse children than other clergy or men in general.
According to the best available data (which is pretty good, coming from a comprehensive report by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 2004, as well as several other studies), 4 percent of Catholic priests in the U.S. sexually victimized minors during the past half century. No evidence has been published at this time which states this number is higher than clergy from other religious traditions. The 4 percent figure appears lower than school teachers during the same time frame, and certainly less than offenders in the general population of men. Research states that over 20 percent of American women and about 15 percent of American men were sexually violated by an adult when they were children. Sexual victimization is tragically fairly common in the general population, but luckily these numbers have been dropping in recent years.
2. Clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church can't be blamed on celibacy. Not having sex doesn't make children the object of one's desire.
First, if Catholic clergy aren't more likely to be sex offenders than other clergy or men in general, then celibacy can't be blamed by itself. Most sex offenders are not celibate clergy. Most are married or partnered. Furthermore, many men who don't have sex for a variety of reasons (e.g., no suitable partners or marital or relationship distress) don't turn to children for sexual gratification. They turn to other consenting adults. Think about it: If you don't have sex, who becomes the object of your desire? Children or other adults?
3. Clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church can't be blamed on homosexuality.
Although the vast majority of victims are boys (80 percent, according to the 2004 John Jay study and other studies), and the Catholic Church has a large number of priests who are homosexual in orientation (22-45 percent, according to a variety of studies and reports), homosexuality doesn't make men sex offenders. No evidence exists that suggest sexual orientation , in and of itself, makes someone at risk to commit sex crimes against children or others. Sexual orientation is not a risk factor for crime.
4. Clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church can't be blamed on an all-male clergy.
If Catholic clergy aren't more likely to be sex offenders than clergy from other traditions, then an all-male clergy can't be blamed. Having women clergy doesn't stop sex offenders from offending.
5. Almost all of clergy sexual abuse cases in the Catholic Church that we hear about in the news are from decades ago (usually the 1960s and 70s).
Although these stories are horrific to hear, they are almost never about incidents that have occurred since the late 1980s. Incidents of abuse in the past 20 to 25 years are quite rare compared to incidents during the 60s and 70s. This is also true for other groups, such as school teachers. Incidents since the 2002 crisis in the U.S. unfolded are especially rare. Most of the more recent cases are from international priests, who were both born and formed (i.e., trained and ordained) overseas, and who generally didn't go through the screening and training process that local men go through. Some argue that more recent victims (i.e., since the mid 1980s) just haven't come forward yet. Perhaps that is true, but thus far, no published data supports this theory.
6. Most clergy sex offenders aren't pedophiles.
Research tells us that about 80 percent of clergy sex offenders abuse post-pubescent teens, not pre-pubescent children. So the phrase " pedophile priest" is a misnomer. You might say that it doesn't matter. Both categories involve victimizing minors. True, but the risk factor profiles, as well as the evaluation and treatment prognoses, are very different between the two groups. Besides, while people may be worried about young children being victimized, they may neglect the more likely victim: the teen.
Perhaps the real issue here is that many are outraged with church leaders (especially bishops), whom they believe have been defensive and arrogant. People demand responsibility and accountability, and they don't see it happening. Clearly, some church leaders treated victims and their families very poorly. For many rank-and-file Catholics, who often put priests on pedestals, it is shocking to hear that some of these men have sexually violated anyone, let alone children. The Catholic Church's unpopular positions on sexual ethics (e.g., masturbation , contraception, homosexuality, divorce ) make sex crimes committed by priests even more scandalous. The secrecy and otherworldliness of the Catholic Church also make the story of child sexual abuse committed by priests of great interest to the media and to the general population.
It all sounds like a Dan Brown novel!
Finally, many of the 25 percent of Americans who are Catholic had ambivalent feelings about their church to begin with, even before the clergy abuse crisis unfolded. Many who were raised in the church during previous generations have deeply emotional stories of priests and nuns who had impossibly high standards for thought and behavior, which makes stories of clergy sexually violating children so hypocritical. Perhaps the gospel verse "He who is without sin may cast the first stone " from John 8:7 sums up this sentiment.
Let me be very clear: The sexual victimization of children by priests (or by anyone for that matter) is inexcusable. Church officials protecting offenders rather than victims is also inexcusable. There is much to be angry about. Many get even more upset when accountability and responsibility in the church doesn't seem to occur.
Many reasonable and thoughtful people argue that the Catholic Church should allow married men, women, and those who are homosexual to be ordained as priests and deacons (as the Episcopalians do) to prevent clergy abuse from occurring. But the current data on clergy abuse just doesn't seem to support these arguments. Perhaps future data will change current findings, but one has to go with the best available data to inform one's thinking now.
The recent clergy abuse stories coming out of Europe and South America are not surprising, but we have to be rational, letting good data and logic inform us, rather than relying on myths, anger , and hysteria. If someone (or some group) has empirical data that can contradict the six points mentioned above, please present it, and let it be subjected to academic peer review. We all may have particular beliefs and perspectives about the causes, contexts, nature , and scope of clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, but we should be informed by empirical quality data and reason.
For more information, you might review my 2004 book, Sin against the Innocents: Sexual Abuse by Priests and the Role of the Catholic Church, and my 1999 book, Bless Me Father For I Have Sinned: Perspectives on Sexual Abuse Committed by Roman Catholic Priests. Additionally, you might take a look at the John Jay Study referred to earlier, which can be accessed from the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops web site: .
A quick 2018 update....
Since this article was written and published in 2010 several additional resources have become available including the John Jay College of Criminal Justice's Causes and Context Study published in 2011 as well as another book about the problem, Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church: A Decade of Crisis, 2002-2012 , published by my team in 2012. Interested readers may wish to review them.
Except that this guy has admitted to it so... He probably did it right?
That's the problem John, the Catholic church attitude is we must protect our pedophile priest at all cost, the victim doesn't matter.
There are over 410,000 Catholic priests, according to the report you posted 4% of them sexually abuse minors. The average pedophile molests 260 victims during their lifetime, so according to the study 16,400 priest will sexually abuse 4,264,000 children over their lifetime with 80% of the victims being boys.
your defense of the Catholic church for covering up these crimes is despicable,
At least 4% of all males are sexually attracted to children. There are about a billion adult males in the world.
That means 260 billion children will be sexually molested.
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I don't know who you are, but you are not capable of making any sense.
I'm not defending anybody. I have to fix my math though. I forgot to take the .04 percent.
So , only 10.4 billion (260*.04) children will be sexually abused.
John, not to butt in, but the total earth population is around 7.5+ billion.
Do you mean million?
80 percent of clergy sex offenders abuse post-pubescent teens
That makes them a chicken hawk but in prison they are still considered Cho Mo's among the inmates and they end up as prison bitches, passed around to get what they gave.
One thing that grates on me is when someone makes the claim that pedophile occurrence in the priesthood is no different than in other occupations. There is an enormous difference when the perp is in the priesthood. Child predators are vile and abhorrent no matter what, but to use religion as a tool for your trade is contemptuous on an entirely different level. It is natural to have a constant awareness and concern for your children’s safety when they are in the care of other adults, but for the perp to be using god as cover to sexually abuse a child is the most disgusting and reprehensible form of pedophelia imaginable.
Frankly, that's kind of laughable coming from an atheist.
I think a coach and in some cases a teacher has as much or more influence over children than their clergy do.
It sounds like you think being an atheist comes with an automatic distrust of anyone who has religion in their lives. That’s so not true. I hate religion, but I don’t automatic hate religionists. They have to earn my disdain with what they do personally, and by and large religionists are not a problem for me personally.
If I needed a babysitter, and my two options were a school teacher and a priest, each of whom I knew only tangentially, my natural instinct would to worry less about the priest than the teacher when it comes to child sex abuse. I would pick the teacher, but only because I wouldn’t want some priest putting religious thoughts in my kids heads in my absence, not because I think they are equally or more prone to sexually abuse my kids.
While I almost always agree with you, on this issue i cannot. Further defense of The Catholic Church is, well, indefensible. All the whataboutisms i still see being used to defend The Church have finally become sickening to the point where they actually indict rather than absolve The Catholic Church. The problem from the onset has been Catholic's knee jerk bad impulse to defend The Church and thus to effectively defend and protect all thos hundreds of pedopriests at the resulting expense and suffering of the thousands of victims, their families, sometimes their lives, God's honest truth and ultimately The Catholic Church itself. Sorry if this offends you butt I truly do believe that The Church did this to The Church. Catholics cannot go on defending and excusing this anymore. Everyone is sick of zThe Church's lame defences on this one issue. It would be way way better if Catholics just fessed up, paid up, begGED for forgiveness and then made all of the structural changes repuired to damn well make damn sure this shit does not continue as it has plainly done for altogether too too too long. Sometimes even popes must pay for their mistakes. After all, nobody is really infallible...
I don't defend the Catholic Church.
To only name the church though when the issue of child sex abuse runs through every aspect of society indicates anti-Catholic bias.
The fact appears to be that Catholic priests dont sexually abuse kids any more than the male population at large does, yet many of you never treat it as a society wide issue, but just a Catholic Church issue. Frankly, it is bigotry.
Public school systems across the country have covered up child sex abuse in the schools. It is also covered up in protestant churches. We don't hear about it because protestant churches are less centralized and the media is not as interested.
I pretty much give up on Newstalkers. It has always been an anti-Catholic site.
I don't mind saying that every Catholic priest or bishop that commits or covers up such crimes should go to prison, as long as we apply the condemnation to every part of society where the child sexual abuse occurs. Schools, churches, youth organizations, athletic organizations.
It is a huge mistake every single time any criminal placed into a position of authority is protected thinking it more important to protect any, and i do mean any, organization's base of power and authority rather than to protect the victims. Those whataboutisms you continue to chronicle are irrelevant as to The Catholic Church's particular culpability in any case right now. The Boy Scouts and The Baptist have their problems too but they do not force all of their leaders and clergy into an unnatural life of celibacy either. No getting around that 800 pound gorilla in the room.
That's incorrect John. Everyone recognizes that pedophiles are a problem in any profession which has contact with and authority over children. But the real problem is the RCC's global conspiracy to cover up these crimes and to shuffle off the rapists to new unsuspecting parishes. Very rarely if ever did the church hierarchy actually call the cops when they suspected that a priest or a bishop was a pedophile....I only know of one case where that happened and it was just this year in Texas.
It is applied to every part of society you get paranoid when it's the Catholic church that's involved in it.