From: an Orthodox friend
Newsgroups: aus.religion.christian
Subject: Re: Speaking of Anglican Lawsuits.


> On Tue, 05 Feb 2002 23:20:03 +1100, israel r t <>
> wrote:
>
>
> >Judging from what you have posted, child abuse seems to be a wide
> >spread problem in church schools.
> >
> >It is a shame that the churches cannot run schools that actually look
> >after children.
>
> And another bit, Notice the rate of churches in the states closing (50
> per week).
>
>
http://www.courierpress.com/cgi-bin/view.cgi?200012/02+abuse120200_fandv.htm
> l+20001202
>
> Abuse allegations from past take toll on many churches
>
>
> Across the United States, churches are dying at the rate of 50 every
> week. Their cause of death is not lack of faith, but lack of finances.
> Half of our nation's churches have fewer than 75 members.
> In Canada, churches have greater financial problems, aggravated by
> lawsuits that affect entire denominations. The Anglican diocese of
> Cariboo in British Columbia faces bankruptcy this year, and the
> Anglican national office will shut down altogether. Several Roman
> Catholic religious orders face the same fate, as do the United Church
> of Christ and the Presbyterian Church.
>
> Even Canada's federal government is being sued. Ottawa has
> appropriated $245 million as a "healing fund" in hopes of escaping
> further demands for compensation.
>
> The grievances come from populations native to Canada who attended 100
> government-funded residential schools, operated from the 1880s until
> just four years ago by major Christian denominations, 60 percent of
> them by Catholic religious orders. Over the years, as many as 100,000
> native children were served. The complainants insist they were served
> badly.
>
> Thousands of aboriginal Canadians have sued the churches and
> government, alleging child abuse.
>
> Apparently, they have a case.
>
> In 1996, responding to the Assembly of First Nations, the Canadian
> government authorized a royal commission to investigate complaints.
> The commission documented a long history of beatings, sodomy and rape
> of male and female students by school staffers. The conviction of 10
> staffers only encouraged more former students to press lawsuits.
>
> Rather than challenge the grievances in public, the Canadian
> government has settled 300 claims out of court for $18 million, but
> 6,200 are outstanding and 80 new claims are made every month.
>
> How was such a scandal buried for more than a century?
>
> The Economist blames it on missionary fervor turned sour. The schools
> were originally created "to transform these 'savages' into 'civilized'
> productive citizens." Such was the educators' zeal that they took
> children from their families and confined them in remote locations
> "where they were poorly fed and clothed, indifferently taught, forced
> to work long hours and whipped if they spoke their native languages."
>
> The churches ran the schools under contract with the government, which
> turned a blind eye to their operation in this horrific exception to
> the separation of church and state.
>
> The churches and government have both apologized, and the churches
> have asked for forgiveness. But the native-born insist they are still
> suffering from their treatment as children, blaming the schools for
> the high rates of divorce, alcoholism, sexual abuse and suicide in
> their communities.
>
> Churches are vulnerable to lawsuits in the United States, too, for the
> behavior of their employees. Doctors can be sued personally for
> malpractice, but only for professional behavior. When clergy are
> accused of abuse, complainants sue the church on the grounds that
> clergy have no private lives but are always on the job.
>