Leader of Poland’s Catholic Church blames children for being sexually abused by priests

Archbishop Jozef Michalik of Poland said that a child from a troubled family "seeks closeness with others and may get lost and may get the other person involved, too."  This is the mindset of the catholic hierarchy and it is not the first time the children have been blamed. How can we stop these crimes when their minds are warped?

Of course when there was an outcry from citizens and prominent politicians expressing outrage Michalik said he was misunderstood and apologized. According to reporters, Michalik had supported a parish priest convicted in 2004 of child sex abuse. One of the priest's victims said she was horrified by Michalik's latest remarks. "Archbishop Michalik's words make us feel fear and revulsion," Ewa Orlowska said.

Poland's church has been hiding cases of sex abuse since 2001. Some 27 Polish priests have been tried for sex abuse since 2001, but most of them had their prison terms suspended. Can victims get justice in Poland where there is no need to report priests to state investigators?

Over and over we hear a familiar cry from the church's defenders. They say that priests are being singled out for blame while teachers and sports coaches also sexually abuse children. Do they realize that statement is basically an admission that they are pedophiles? They are saying, “We do it but so does everyone else” – does that make it less of a crime?

The catholic clergy are experts at denial and lies. Dominican Republic investigators recently accused two Polish clergymen of child sex abuse: Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, the Vatican's ambassador who was then removed by the vatican, and Rev. Wojciech Gil, a parish priest. Gil denied sexually abusing children and said that the Dominican drug mafia was taking revenge on him for his educational work.

Do all these child molesters think that we are naive and out of touch with reality? Do they ignore the growing global network that now watches every move they make? They are on a slippery slope that can only lead down to where they belong.