Penn State riots; we ignore child abuse (video)

Wisdom Quarterly

RussiaToday (Courtesy of Derek Himes) You will NOT fire our winning coaches even if they molest boys in the locker room. They're winning football games!

Today (Nov. 9, 2011) police in riot gear -- bored from plotting against peaceful Occupy Movement demonstrators -- confronted hundreds of Penn State jocks and football fans who took to the streets after the ouster of child-molestation-ignoring coach Joe Paterno.

Accused child rapist Coach Sundusky, founder of Second Mile

Crowds toppled a television news van. The sports lovers flooded downtown State College after Paterno and university President Graham Spanier were fired amid a growing furor linked to their handling of homosexual child molestation and rape allegations against manly former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

Silent all these years
Wisdom Quarterly (COMMENTARY)
Is it any wonder Catholic priests, scout leaders, and coaches regularly sodomize children, get drunk, and watch porn? It seems our entire society is swept over by child molesting.

Macho football coaches molest boys in locker room showers, tough police assault detainees, hypermasculine soldiers homosexually rape fellow soldiers, officers condone gang rape and belittling victims, brutal prison inmates regularly engage in sex with men, fathers have gay sex with children. It just seems that for such a heterosexual Christian nation, we sure are hypocritical.

There is a taboo in most societies against molesting children.
Only the taboo is not against the molestation itself.
It is against talking about it, especially by victims.
We w ill not stand for it!

We say there's nothing wrong with choosing to be gay -- while the dominant religions of our culture absolutely condemn it. Yet we secretly and shamefully exploit the vulnerable and take out homosexual impulses on them, which we must have inherited from being molested ourselves. And nearly no one stops the insidious circle of abuse.

One dare not speak its name! And when priests are caught (not rogue "soldiers for the lord" but average, commonplace clerics condoned by the Church in over 200 Christian sects and non-Christian institutions as well), we go deaf, dumb, and blind -- in effect condoning it ourselves, even when it is our kids, our fathers, our soldiers, our coaches.

Then we cry and say God will take care of it, so what is there for us to do if He's handling it? No problem here. That only happens in other countries like Afghanistan and Iran or anywhere are "enemies" are.

• RAINN: Silent no more
  
• SIA: Survivors of [Molestation] Anonymous
• SNAP: Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
• VIDEO: Sex on campus, rape is a shocking reality
  

Those who do not work it out act it out.

NOTE: What does this issue have to do with Buddhism? Lots. First of all, there is the issue of sexual misconduct (kamesu micchacara), which at its most fundamental level means having intercourse with those dependent on others for protection and support. Children, unable to consent, are in a sense being raped. We, being interdependent, are all being hurt. There is also the issue of causing harm to society beyond the victims and their loved ones. There is the issue of retaliating, which is said to be worse than attacking. Say, just for the sake of argument, that Sandusky was the victim of childhood sexual abuse and that this gave him a penchant to turn around and do the same thing. By doing, he becomes worse than his perpetrators. We all do. If we regard as wrong what was done to us, we certainly do not want to do that to someone and then bring it upon ourselves in the future again (by the strange and mind boggling operation of karma). There is the issue of hypocrisy, of sports and money being more important to a school than academics and science. This issue is a lot bigger than Penn State or football.

Woman arrested for molesting TSA agent

Eric W. Dolan (FOX, July 16, 2011)

Woman squeezes TSA officer’s breast at checkpoint
A 61-year-old woman allegedly squeezed and twisted the breast of a TSA officer [searching and groping airport passengers passing through security] on Thursday at a security checkpoint in Sky Harbor Int'l Airport in Phoenix. More

Woman reverse-gropes TSA agent's breast

• Woman arrested for not letting TSA grope her daughter
• InfoWars.com: Woman arrested for groping TSA agent
• Right-wing extremists resent living in police state
• Woman sexually assaulted by TSA screener at airport
  
• Dalai Lama speaks to thousands on the National Mall
• Buddhism in a Nutshell
  

Sogyal Rinpoche in Sex Abuse Scandal

• Allegations against Sogyal Rinpoche highlight the dangers of [Mahayana] Buddhist injunctions against gossip [that in any way criticizes the Sangha, which in Mahayana Buddhism means the entire "community" of practitioners, in front of outsiders] and insistence on loyalty.

Lama sex abuse claims call Buddhist taboos into question

Mary Finnigan (guardian.co.uk)
An exiled Tibetan Buddhist nun prostrates around the main temple and the residence of Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama (Ashwini Bhatia/AP).

In November 1994 an American woman known as Janice Doe filed a $10m lawsuit against the Tibetan lama Sogyal Rinpoche, charging him with sexual, mental, and physical abuse. The case was dealt with out of court and Janice Doe signed a non-disclosure agreement in return for a cash settlement.

Sogyal Rinpoche with Joan Halifax and Richard Gere in Switzerland, 1985

Sogyal denies allegations of abuse, but fresh evidence against him was recently aired in an investigative documentary called In the Name of Enlightenment, broadcast on Vision TV in Canada.

A beautiful young woman identified as Mimi described an abusive sexual relationship. She was the first person claiming direct experience of Sogyal's exploitative attentions to go public since the 1994 lawsuit.

Sogyal (surname Lakar -- rinpoche is a title that means "precious one") is the frontman for a Tibetan Buddhist organization called Rigpa, which has a worldwide reach with 130 centers in 41 countries. He has a bestselling book, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, to his name and he starred alongside Keanu Reeves [Chris Issak, Bridget Fonda] in the movie Little Buddha.

Sogyal is a formidably successful guru -- probably the best known Tibetan after the Dalai Lama. His trajectory into Buddhist superstardom suffered only a temporary setback following the Janice Doe lawsuit -- despite the fact that lurid rumors about his sex life circulate on the Internet with increasing volume and persistence.

The allegations raise a wider question: Why are victims of sexual exploitation by charismatic religious leaders reluctant to denounce their abusers? In the Canadian documentary, Mimi highlights the "Stockholm syndrome"... More

Sex Scandals in Religion.com

A Tibetan Buddhist master beloved by millions uses his position and authority to take advantage of young women. For over three decades, complaints are dismissed as merely the grumblings of the uninitiated. A guru focused on his own pleasure turns the Path to enlightenment into a road of sexual servitude. Written and directed by Debi Goodwin.

Sex and Buddhist monasticism?

Wisdom Quarterly (COMMENTARY)

Renunciates have always faced the lure of desires, aversions, and delusions making the ordinary (non-accomplished), uninstructed Sangha ripe for abuses.

How would Buddhism be any better a tradition if it concealed serious rule violations by its monastics? Most stories that come to our attention are not actually alleged to have been acts committed by "monastics" who follow many precepts. They are usually the deeds of "novices," who are probationers in training to keep ten precepts.

• The Buddhist Monastic Code (English)
  

For fully ordained monks and nuns, four acts are considered "defeat offenses" entailing immediate expulsion and loss of ordination from the Buddhist Monastic Order.

This is true for all Buddhist schools, even if lesser rules have been altered over the centuries. The historical Buddha set up a celibate monastic tradition with many disciplinary guidelines dealing crucial requisites and minor etiquette. Why?

The Buddha explained that it was ultimately for the good of humans and devas, so that the teachings would remain in the world as long as possible. More specifically, the rules are in place to increase confidence in the Sangha so that people will become receptive to hearing the Dharma and practicing for the benefit of one and all. It is also for the peace and progress of sincere monastics and the training of those able to be trained.

By following the Five Precepts, lay Buddhists do not face the same restrictions as those who follow hundreds of guidelines. Nor do they risk losing their status for lapses. If Buddhists conceal the disqualifying offenses of monastics -- an act as unskillful as making false allegations -- the Dharma is lost. There are only four monastic acts that cannot be remedied:

1. murder
2. sexual penetration of any kind
3. stealing
4. falsely claiming spiritual attainments

DEFEAT: (Sanskrit, pārājika-dharma), a group of four offenses that are the most serious in the Buddhist monastic code of discipline (Prātimokṣa). The penalty for any of the four is lifelong expulsion from the monastic order (Sangha). The four are (1) sexual intercourse; (2) serious theft; (3) murder; (4) falsely claiming to have attained supernatural powers [or the stages of enlightenment]. A monastic who commits a "defeat" (the traditional etymology of pārājika) offense is compared to "a person whose head is cut off, or a withered leaf dropped from the tree, or a stone slab split in two, or a palm tree cut from the top [which is incapable of regrowing]." Such a person has been defeated and cannot be readmitted to the Order (encyclopedia.com).

• Shock at lama Sogyal Rinpoche's past
• The Politics of Well-Being: Gurus behaving badly
• VIDEO: sex abuse allegations vex Vatican
• AUDIO: Father Lopez Lopez, another case of Vatican molestation
• Group speaks out against priest convicted of child molestation
• SNAP: The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
• Catholic priest extradited to Ireland to face molestation charges
• Hare Krishnas sued for child sexual and physical abuse

Sexed, Stressed, and Sick (addictions)

Dr. Gabor Maté on the Stress-Disease connection, addiction, ADD, and the destruction of American childhood

For Memorial Day Democracy Now! presented special programming combining the amazing contributions to understanding the root of diseases many think are genetic. He also exposes the complicity of the pharmaceutical industry: Americans, who comprise only 5% of the world's population, are prescribed 66% of the world's psychoactive medications such as Prozac.

Sex addiction is one of the main compulsions in America today, largely stemming from our traumatic childhoods, exposure to ubiquitous porn, our craving for comfort, and religious oppression. (Image: a scene from "Choke," nytimes.com).

They are actually due to childhood trauma, diet, and stress. Canadian physician, disease and addiction expert, and bestselling author Dr. Gabor Maté presents his findings together on one program.

The screen, the screen, we're as addicted to our screens as children are to candy.

This includes his groundbreaking Buddhist work In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction on sex, computer screen, workaholism, drug, excitement, and fast food cravings, which drive feel good brain chemicals.

Internet porn, masturbation, adultery, alcoholism, "acting out," what's at the root of our compulsive/self-soothing behaviors?

From disease to addiction, parenting to childhood ADD (attention deficit disorder), Dr. Maté’s work focuses on the centrality of early childhood experiences on the development of the brain and susceptibility to a wide array of "incurable" diseases and addictions.

Early childhood experiences such as being sexually mole

sted or emotionally traumatized impact everything from behavioral patterns to physical and mental illness. The relationship between emotional stress and disease -- and mental and physical health more broadly -- is often considered controversial within medical orthodoxy.

But Dr. Maté convincingly argues that many doctors seem to have forgotten what was once a commonplace assumption -- that emotions are deeply implicated in the development of illness, addictions, and psychological disorders and, more importantly, in their healing.

Catholic: Molestation vs. Monasticism

Priests molest children; Nuns offer spirituality

Is homosexuality the Church's excuse for massive pedophilia and cover up scandals?

(AlterBoys) "The problem is not just with the fraction of priests who molests youngsters, but in an ecclesiastical power structure which harbors pedophiles, conceals other sexual behavior patterns among its clerics, and uses the strategies of duplicity and counterattack against the victims" (Joughin, M. "Church response to the sex abuse priest," In Fidelity, No.8., Sept. 1995, pg. 1).

Catholic nuns launch lay monastic movement

(CathNews.com) An order of Benedictine Sisters in Pennsylvania has launched what they describe as a lay monastic movement for seekers of God and a meaningful life, calling it “our gift to the next generation,” reports NCR Online.

“Monasteries of the Heart: A New Movement for a New World” offers an opportunity for anyone -- regardless, or even in the absence, of faith tradition -- to live Benedictine spirituality and values with online communities or in face-to-face groups of family, friends, neighbors, or fellow churchgoers, they say.

Members create their own “monastery” by supporting each other in shaping their spiritual lives around Benedictine values of community, prayer, meaningful work, peace, and care [proper stewardship not human exploitation] of creation. They can gather around a table or in an online “monastery without walls” for prayer, discussion, and reflection. More

• Defending the Faith from Falsehoods (mostholyfamilymonastery.com)

Study: Priests molested due to Sexual Revolution

(Joe.My.God-blog) According to a five year study commissioned by the Catholic Church, the real reason all those priests committed child molestation is because they were "poorly prepared and monitored" during the social tumult of the sexual revolution. Blame it on Woodstock.

The researchers concluded that it was not possible for the Church, or for anyone, to identify abusive priests [and bishops] in advance. Priests who abused minors have no particular “psychological characteristics,” “developmental histories,” or mood disorders that distinguished them from priests who had not abused, the researchers found.

Since the scandal broke, conservatives in the Church have blamed gay priests for perpetrating the abuse, while liberals have argued that the all-male, celibate culture of the priesthood was the cause. This report will satisfy neither flank.

The report notes that homosexual men began entering the seminaries “in noticeable numbers” from the late 1970s through the 1980s. By the time this cohort entered the priesthood, in the mid-1980s, the reports of sexual abuse of minors by priests began to drop and then to level off.

If anything, the report says, the abuse decreased as more gay priests began serving the Church. Many more boys than girls were victimized, the report says, not because the perpetrators were gay, but simply because the priests had more access to boys than to girls, in parishes, schools, and extracurricular activities.

The $1,800,000 study was conducted by New York's John Jay College, with the Department of Justice contributing $280,000.


The Pope knows Catholic priests molest children.

The future Pope Benedict XVI resisted pleas to defrock a California priest with a record of sexually molesting children according to a 1985 letter. AP writer Gillian Flaccus says the letter reveals then-Cardinal Ratzinger was aware of the case (April 9, 2010).

Palm Sunday meditation: Take up my cross?

Huffington Post, Rev. James Martin, S.J. Catholic priest and author, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything

Palm Sunday raises at least two important spiritual questions for Christians: What does it mean to be like Jesus? And what does it mean to take up our crosses, just like he did? First, you don't need to go looking for your cross. Life gives them to you. Whether it's an illness or a tough family relationship or trouble in school or problems on the job. The real cross is the one that you don't want. Because it's hardly a cross if you want it. Just like it was for Jesus. Second, we are asked by Jesus to accept our crosses. Now, what does that mean? More

Church has Homosexual crisis, not Pedophilia crisis

Did Jesus have siblings?

Pope links (priestly) sex abuse to vices

Vatican defends Pope's record on sexual abuse

VIDEO: Christopher Hitchens slams Vatican, Pope over sex abuse scandal

Madonna and Opus Dei?

Pope's Sex Abuse Scandal

Passover for Children

Passover 2011 Bread

Does God choose when we die?

Liberate Yourself, Your Seder, Our World

Sikh men die after possible hate crime

"Forgive Us Our Trespasses"

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