An Open Letter to the Bishops
by the Catholic Medical Association Task Force
May 29, 2002
A Letter to the Catholic Bishops
Your Excellencies:
As a Catholic psychiatrist and psychologist who have treated a significant
number of priests from various dioceses and religious communities over
the past 25 years for same-sex attraction (SSA or homosexuality) and for
pedophilia and ephebophilia (homosexual behavior with adolescents), we
believe that our particular expertise and those of our colleagues in the
Catholic Medical Association may be of help to the American bishops as
they seek to create effective long term strategies to prevent the recurrence
of the problems in which the Catholic Church in the United States now finds
itself enmeshed.
Many have pointed out that solving the problem of sexual abuse by clergy
will necessarily involve addressing the problem of SSA among priests. Bishop
Wilton D. Gregory, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops,
admitted at a press conference in Rome on April 23 the existence of an
ongoing struggle to ensure that the Catholic priesthood is not dominated
by homosexual men.
As the revelations of abuse have become public it has become increasingly
clear that almost all the victims are adolescent males, not prepubescent
boys. The problem of priests with same-sex attractions (SSA) molesting
adolescents or children must be addressed if future scandals are to be
avoided.
In treating priests who have engaged in pedophilia and ephebophilia we
have observed that these men almost without exception suffered from a denial
of sin in their lives. They were unwilling to admit and address the profound
emotional pain they experienced in childhood of loneliness, often in the
father relationship, peer rejection, lack of male confidence, poor body
image, sadness, and anger. This anger, which originated most often from
disappointments and hurts with their peers and/or fathers, was often directed
toward the Church, the Holy Father, and the religious authorities. Rejecting
the Church’s teachings on sexual morality, these men for the most
part adopted the utilitarian sexual ethic which the Holy Father so brilliantly
critiqued in his book, Love and Responsibility. They came to see their
own pleasure as the highest end and used others — including adolescents
and children — as sexual objects. They consistently refused to examine
their consciences, to accept the Church’s teachings on moral issues
as a guide for their personal actions, or regularly avail themselves of
the sacrament of penance. These priests either refused to seek spiritual
direction or choose a spiritual director or confessor who openly rebelled
against Church teachings on sexuality. Tragically, these mistakes allowed
these men to justify their behaviors.
The Bishops, individually and collectively, should develop screening protocols
which will identify men who may pose a risk to others and who cannot live
the chaste celibacy required of a priest. This is essential to protect
the Church and her children from further pain, sorrow and future scandals.
While no screening system is absolutely foolproof, sufficient research
is available to develop efficient tools for this task.
One of the major problems we have discovered in discussing this issue
with the clergy and the laity is the enormous amount of misinformation
about the nature, origins, and treatment of homosexuality/SSA. This is
not accidental. For over twenty years, activists, intent on changing the
laws on sexual orientation, have put forward a massive public relations
campaign specifically designed to spread misinformation that will change
the social acceptance of homosexuality.
For example, many people sincerely believe that scientific research has
produced conclusive evidence that homosexuality is a genetically inherited
condition, determined before birth, and cannot be changed. In fact, no
such evidence exists. Several studies have been promoted in the media as
providing the “proof,” but when one reads these studies,
one discovers the authors do not even claim to have presented such proof.
There is no verifiable evidence that same-sex attraction is genetically
determined. If same-sex attraction were genetically determined, identical
twins would always have the same sexual attraction pattern. Numerous studies
of twins have shown that this is not the case. And there are numerous studies
documenting change of sexual attraction pattern (see Homosexuality and
Hope, available at www.cathmed.org).
One of the reasons why people have been so willing to accept the idea
that same-sex attraction is genetically determined is their own experience
with men who are extremely effeminate and have been so since early childhood.
This condition of extreme effeminacy is called Gender Identity Disorder
(GID). The differences between boys with GID and other boys are so profound,
that those observing them conclude that the boys with GID must have been
born that way. Those who treat GID have found that effective family therapy
in which the father bonds more closely with the son and affirms his son’s
masculinity can in a relatively short time result in the elimination of
these symptoms and the emergence of normal boyish behavior. Tragically,
because this information is not widely known most boys with GID do not
receive treatment and approximately 75% of them will go on to develop SSA
in adolescence. Unfortunately, if these boys come from Catholic families,
those around them may point them toward the priesthood. Because they aren’t
attracted to girls, people wrongly assume that the celibate life will be
easy for them.
In our practice, we have seen many boys who suffered from distant father
relationships, lacked hand eye coordination and subsequently were subjected
to humiliating teasing from peers because of their inability to play sports.
These and other factors lead to feelings of male inadequacy and loneliness
and later to homosexual attractions. The sooner these problems are addressed
in therapy, the more hope there is for a full recovery.
For example, a 26 year old client had experienced severe peer rejection
as child and teenager because of his inability to play sports. In addition,
his father was distant, and his mother overly dependent. At age 10 he began
to experience same sex attractions which intensified in his adolescence.
Fortunately, as a faithful Catholic he never gave into the temptations
to act on these feelings. During therapy he was able to identify the causes
of his same-sex attraction, to forgive those who had hurt him, and to develop
a stronger and comforting relationship with God the Father and St. Joseph
as another loving father, Jesus as his loving and accepting friend at every
life stage and Our Lady as a cheerful giving mother. As the emotional pain
was resolved, his male confidence grew, his same sex attraction diminished
markedly and later resolved. He came to realize that he was not homosexual,
but a man who had been wounded emotionally in many relationships from early
in his life and who could be healed.
Michael (not his real name) was a seminary student when he came into treatment
for same sex attractions. He gradually understood that the origins of the
same sex attractions arose from a very negative body image which he had
had from the time he was a young boy because he had been overweight. He
was regularly picked on by his peers in elementary and middle school because
of his physical appearance. He has intense loneliness in peer relationships
from his childhood and adolescence. During his several years in therapy,
he worked at trying to forgive his peers who ridiculed his physical appearance.
He also attempted to reject the culture’s obsession with physical
appearance, and began to thank God for his masculine gifts and body image.
He also meditated upon the Lord being at his side as his best friend in
elementary and middle school. He benefited by reflecting that his body
is a temple of the Holy Spirit, in addition to asking for a certain sense
of detachment, and by being thankful for his God-given body. Finally, he
also worked out physically to prevent more weight gain. Slowly his masculine
identity and body image improved. His deep inner loneliness lessened through
a profound sense of being loved by the Lord.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that homosexuality’s “psychological
genesis remains largely unexplained” (#2357). While it is understandable
that the writers of the Catechism would not wish to make a definitive statement
about a question which is at the center of such a contentious public debate,
this statement does not accurately reflect what is known about homosexuality.
There is ample evidence that same-sex attraction has many different causes.
These lead to significant childhood and adolescent emotional pain and psychological
problems. Among males these could include a weak masculine identity, social
isolation and loneliness, peer rejection or a poor body image and in females,
a mistrust of male love or a weak feminine identity. No one can say “this
is the cause” for same-sex attraction as though there were a single
cause, but an individual can come to understand the origins of his or her
own same-sex attractions through insight gained in therapy.
Men and women experiencing same-sex attraction may rightly feel that they “have
always felt different,” but that doesn’t mean they were born
that way. Children are born either male or female, but they have to learn
what it means to be a man or a woman. They have to identify with — and
be accepted by — their same-sex parents and peers. If they are going
to grow up psychologically healthy they have to feel safe and comfortable
with their masculinity or femininity. If, for whatever reason, they fail
to pass successfully through this essential developmental stage, they may
in adolescence develop same-sex attractions.
There has been a massive campaign to hide this information from the general
public and from those who sincerely wish to be free from same-sex attraction.
In 2000, Dr. Robert Spitzer of Columbia University, who had been instrumental
in the removal from the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of homosexuality as a diagnosis in 1973, was challenged
by men and women healed of their same sex attractions that change is possible.
Spitzer interviewed 200 men and women claiming to have achieved significant
change and found that 60% of the males whom he studied identified themselves
as heterosexual 5 years after their treatment ended. Most of those who
were successful also participated in faith based support programs (Throckmorton,
2002).
While there are numerous reports of substantial change through therapy
alone, programs which rely on God or which are specifically Christian provide
significant help in dealing with the compulsive behaviors, loneliness and
lack of confidence that accompany SSA. This should come as no surprise
to Catholics who already know the power of Christ’s healing love.
To those who wish to be free from same-sex attraction it can be said with
confidence that God didn’t make them that way and He wants them
to be free. The good news is that SSA attraction can respond to therapy
and that membership in a support group such as Courage can help a person
to find healing and freedom.
The road to freedom, however, is long and arduous. For many individuals,
it is often accompanied by other serious psychological problems and addictions.
Three recent well designed studies (Fergusson, Herrell, and Sandfort) have
shown that persons with SSA suffer from other psychological problems at
a rate substantially higher than those without SSA. Some of these problems,
such as pathological narcissism and borderline personality disorder are
very difficult to treat.
Additionally, men with SSA are more likely to suffer from substance abuse
problems, sexual paraphilias, and sexual addiction. Such problems complicate
recovery. Also, men with SSA are more likely than other men to have a history
of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). While arriving at an exact percentage
is difficult, some experts suggest that about 16% of all men have experienced
CSA. Several studies of men self-identified as homosexual revealed that
40% had a history of CSA. Given the high level of long term psychological
problems associated with a history of CSA, it is not surprising that men
with SSA have numerous problems.
There are other serious problems which need to be addressed. For example,
sexual harassment exists at certain seminaries. Any Catholic institution
which knowingly tolerates sexual harassment — heterosexual or homosexual — betrays
the moral teaching of Christ and contributes to the suffering of others.
It also risks incurring financial liability.
Recommendations
Healing for Victims of Sexual Abuse
Forgiveness
has been demonstrated in both research studies and in clinical experience
to be of great value in healing the wounds of anger, sadness, mistrust
and loss of confidence in those who have been sexually abused (Enright,
1998, Enright & Fitzgibbons, 2000). In addition to asking
for forgiveness Bishops should encourage the victims and their families
to consider pursuing the healing path of understanding and forgiving those
who have hurt them. The resolution of anger will protect their emotional
and mental health and assist in overcoming the pain of the past.
Treatment for priests with SSA
We observed many priests
grow in holiness and in happiness in their ministry as a result of the
healing of their childhood and adolescent male insecurity and loneliness
and, subsequently, their same sex attractions. This healing process has
been described in Fr. John Harvey’s book, The Truth
About Homosexuality and in the statement of the Catholic Medical Association,
Homosexuality and Hope, available at www.cathmed.org.
Bishops would also see this healing if they encourage priests with SSA
to pursue appropriate therapy with those loyal to the Church’s teaching.
Most males with SSA had painful childhood and adolescent peer relationships.
Under the stress of loneliness and insecurity in adult life, there can
be an unconscious association to this adolescent and childhood pain. Attractions
to children, adolescents or adult males then develop in an unconscious
attempt to gain acceptance and lessen the pain of sadness, loneliness and
lack of male confidence. These attractions become eroticized and then homosexual
behaviors begin. The treatment of the emotional pain in these priests is
essential in order to protect the Church and her children from further
sorrow and scandal.
Priests, with or without SSA, who have themselves been the victims of
childhood sexual abuse should receive counseling. Only a small percentage
of victims of childhood sexual abuse will go on to abuse children, but
a significant percentage will suffer from various problems which affect
their ministry.
Our experience over 25 years has convinced us of the direct link between
rebellion and anger against the Church’s teaching, and sexually
promiscuous behaviors. This appears to be a two way street: those who are
sexually active dissent from the Church’s teaching on sexuality
to justify their own actions, while those who adopt rebellious ideas on
sexual morality are more vulnerable to become sexually active, because
they have little to no defense against sexual temptations. Growth in forgiveness
and in humility are essential in the treatment of such priests.
Finally, priests should be screened for homosexuality by their bishops
or religious superiors prior to being considered for a position of responsibility
in a diocese, religious community or in the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops. The previous attitude of “winking” at homosexuality
in priests must end. Otherwise, all Church teaching on sexual morality
is undermined. Also, complaints by priests of aggressive homosexual behavior
in rectories and religious communities should be addressed and no longer
ignored.
The evaluation of seminarians
Protocols should be developed which will allow those professionals who
screen candidates for the priesthood to identify those individuals with
serious problems, to recommend therapy for those with correctable problems,
and to accept those who can live chaste celibacy and pose no threat to
others. Simply asking a candidate if he is a heterosexual or a homosexual,
or if he is sexually interested in adolescents or children is not sufficient.
Proper history taking, a clinical interview, and psychological testing
correctly interpreted will uncover most current and potential problems.
Two different studies have found that the answers to a small number of
questions about childhood and adolescent experiences included within a
larger questionnaire allowed the clinical interviewer to conclude, with
90% accuracy, whether the subject was a heterosexual or a homosexual.
When the evaluation reveals probable SSA, the candidate is not automatically
excluded from consideration. If he is willing to do the hard work required
to come to freedom from his emotional pain, his same sex attractions will
be resolved and then he can reapply later. The Church should not take the
moral risk of allowing someone with SSA to enter the seminary. Also, a
period of sexual abstinence for five years should be required of those
with SSA prior to entering the seminary.
It should be noted, that many men with SSA will have problems besides
their SSA which could make admission to the seminary inadvisable. For example,
men with SSA are more likely to have problems with compulsive masturbation,
other sexual addictions, substance abuse problems, history of childhood
sexual abuse, and depressive illness.
It is essential that mental health professionals involved in any way with
the evaluation of candidates for seminary or with treating seminarians
or priests, as well as the faculty at the seminaries support the teaching
of the Church on sexuality, particularly on homosexuality. In our experience,
there are some dioceses and religious communities who rely upon the work
of mental health professionals who actively disagree with the Church’s
sexual morality. Given the specialized nature of evaluating candidates
for seminaries we recommend that the psychologists and psychiatrists who
engage in this important work be required to participate in ongoing educational
programs given by those loyal to the Church’s teaching on sexual
morality.
Seminary/Formation Faculty
Pope John Paul II at his
meeting with the American Cardinals on April 23, 2002 stated: “People
must know that bishops and priests are totally committed to the fullness
of Catholic truth on matters of sexual morality, a truth as essential to
the renewal of the priesthood and the episcopate as it is to the renewal
of marriage and family life.”
Many faculty members of seminaries and religious houses do not adhere
to the truth on matters of sexual morality and faith. For decades moral
relativism, proportionalism, and situational ethics have been taught in
these centers of formation. These teachings have contributed to the present
crisis in the Church. Seminarians who support Church teaching on sexual
morality, Scripture, the liturgy, and fundamental moral theology have been
labeled as rigid and often expelled from seminaries. Seminary faculty members,
members of formation teams in religious communities, and individuals on
vocations’ committees who have a rebellious and dissenting or homosexual
agenda are driven to remove from the seminary males who are loyal to the
Church’s teachings on matters of faith and morals.
We recommend that Cardinals, Bishops and religious superiors either personally
interview or send visitation teams to interview all faculty members of
seminaries and formation teams. They need to be certain that these individuals
are loyal to the Holy Father and the Church’s teaching on faith
and morals and that they refrain from intimidating seminarians into questioning
the value of orthodoxy. Those who are not loyal should be removed.
In order to protect the priesthood from further homosexual behavior with
adolescent males by priests, we recommend ending the referral of seminarians
to seminaries which are well known to be heterodox in regard to homosexuality.
The purification of the seminaries is essential to the protection of the
Church and her children. Finally, seminarians, including those in religious
orders, with homosexual tendencies should not be ordained until they understand
the emotional causes of their attractions, work to resolve them, and are
emotionally healthy.
The availability of education and treatment in every diocese
Having
seen the suffering caused by untreated SSA, the burden of sexual sin and
the freedom that comes when the emotional problems are addressed and healed,
we believe that nothing is more pastoral or more loving than the clear
proclamation of the Church’s teaching on sexual morality,
accompanied by effective, accessible treatment. We recommend that Bishops
and religious superiors instruct their priests to communicate the fullness
of truth on sexual morality in their parishes and schools.
Courage is the only recovery program for those with same sex attractions
which adheres to the Catholic moral teaching on homosexuality and has been
endorsed by the Vatican. This program should be available in every diocese
for both laity and priests. If priests and laity do not have access to
therapy which can help them come to the freedom proper to the children
of God and support groups like Courage, they may fall into despair and
feel that the Church has placed upon them a burden that is impossible to
bear. Unfortunately, in some dioceses groups, such as Dignity, which do
not accept the Church’s teaching on sexual morality, have a voice,
while Courage is not welcome.
Priests need to understand the origins of
SSA and the healing approaches which have been demonstrated to be effective.
In addition, because of the tremendous confusion over homosexuality, it
would be beneficial that conferences for priests and seminarians be given
by experts such as Fr. John Harvey, O.S.F.S., the founder of Courage, and
by other mental health professionals who accept the Church’s teaching
on homosexuality and are experienced in the successful treatment of SSA.
Education for priests concerning the nature, origins, and treatment of
SSA should increase their compassion and help priests who regularly deal
with these problems in the confessional.
Unfortunately, conferences have
been offered to priests and seminarians in which homosexuality is presented
as being genetically determined and no hope for healing is offered. The
recognition of chastity as a healthy virtue is rejected. Chastity, in the
experience of many mental health professionals, is, in fact, a positive
quality in any individual’s life.
At the present time, a number of
treatment centers to which priests are sent for sexual disorders treat
homosexuality as an identity to be embraced. Influenced by the politics
within the American Psychiatric Association and American Psychological
Association, the possibility of healing is censured. Patients are encouraged
to participate in 12 step groups for compulsive sexual behaviors, but the
emotional origins of their same sex attractions are not explored nor is
a plan offered for healing unresolved emotional pain. These vulnerable
men are often returned to ministry with serious untreated problems. Fr.
Harvey’s program could be modified for incorporation
into the present inpatient treatment programs in group and individual therapy,
as well as in spiritual direction.
Since training in the treatment of SSA
and GID in conformity with the Catholic understanding of the human person
is not being provided at most secular institutions, it is important that
this training be available either in Catholic institutions or through separate
programs.
On April 23, 2002 the Holy Father encouraged the American Cardinals: “We
must be confident that this time of trial will bring a purification of
the entire Catholic community, a purification that is urgently needed if
the Church is to preach more effectively the Gospel of Jesus Christ in
all its liberating force. Now you must ensure that where sin increased,
grace will all the more abound (Romans 5: 20). So much pain, so much sorrow
must lead to a holier priesthood, a holier episcopate, and a holier Church.”
There
are reasons for hope. The problems of homosexuality in the priesthood have
been painfully uncovered and need to be addressed. There is no proven genetic
basis for homosexuality. The emotional wounds which cause same sex attractions
can be identified and healed. Large numbers of people, including clergy,
who had SSA are now substantially cured, especially if they brought the
power of faith into the healing process. These men and women no longer
view themselves as being homosexual. The statement of the Catholic Medical
Association on homosexuality, Homosexuality and Hope t(www.cathmed.org),
should be made available to all priests, educators and Catholic families.
With the Lord’s help, the Catholic priests who struggle with homosexuality
can be healed.
Richard P. Fitzgibbons, M.D.
Peter Rudegeair, M.A.
Eugene F. Diamond, M.D.
For the Catholic Medical Association
159 Washington Street, Suite 3
Boston, Massachusetts 02135
Richard P. Fitzgibbons is a psychiatrist and director of Comprehensive
Counseling Center, W. Conshohocken, PA. He is the author of chapters on
the origins and healing of same sex attraction disorder in The Truth About
Homosexuality, Rev, John Harvey, O.S.F.S.(ed), Ignatius Press 1996, and
Homosexuality and American Public Life, C. Wolfe (ed.), Spence, 1999 and
coauthor of Homosexuality and Hope of the Catholic Medical Association,
2000, www.cathmed.org. He has authored articles on Resolving Loneliness
in Priestly Life and Resolving Conflicts in Priestly Relationships in The
Priest.
Peter Rudegeair is a licensed psychologist at Comprehensive Counseling
Services in W. Conshohocken, PA. He is a coauthor of Homosexuality
and Hope of the Catholic Medical Association. He has given many conferences
to priests and seminarians, Courage groups, educators and physicians
on the origins and healing of same sex attraction disorder.
Eugene Diamond is a pediatrician in Chicago and professor of pediatrics
at the Loyola University School of Medicine. He chaired a task force of
the Catholic Medical Association which produced the document Homosexuality
and Hope and has authored 200 articles on pediatrics and bioethics.
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