There have been a number of attempts to incite anger against ourselves by implying that we support paedophilia. Because the issue of paedophilia is such a volatile one these days, it is one of the easiest words to use when someone is trying to incite a lynch mob. The media, both sides of the political spectrum, virtually all churches, and virtually all members of the general public range between those who want to kill paedophiles in the most painful way possible (on the right) to those who publicly and strongly denounce the practice (on the left).
To speak up in defence of the paedophiles themselves as human beings is on a par with speaking up in defence of the 9/11 perpetrators. So, with an introduction like that, we can expect that this article is going to add more fuel to the torches being carried by the lynch mobs who seek to have us destroyed.
We will say, for the record (once again) that we think paedophilia is a despicable practice and that stringent measures are urgently needed to curb the spread of this terrible curse on our society.
But, having said that, we would start by reminding people that one of the most insidious fruits of paedophilia is simply that it eventually creates paedophiles from its own victims. One can rob people without making those victims into robbers themselves. Rape victims are never going to become rapists. And only rarely will a murder victim take the life of their killer as they die; even then, there is some justice in that the crime rebounds back on the perpetrator, rather than on some other innocent person, as happens with paedophilia.
Victims of paedophilia frequently grow up to become predators themselves, preying on other innocent children. One would think that this pattern in itself would cause at least a few of the hate-mongers to question who they hope to help when they set out to vent their anger on someone who very likely was, a few years earlier, an innocent victim of child sex abuse themselves.
There is a further dilemma which seems to be unique to paedophiles. They appear to be beyond feeling guilt for their behaviour, or at least beyond self-induced rehabilitation. Despite all of the condemnation that they receive from angry mobs and vitriolic media reps (as well as a lot of other therapies), they don't seem to be capable of changing. The rehabilitation rate is virtually zero.
We could say that this makes them even more depraved and even more worthy of execution, but it makes more sense to say that something happened when they were being abused as children which is not going to change through emotional appeals or vengeful threats now.
I'm not saying that we should pat them on the head and say, "There, there! Don't be discouraged. God will forgive you for what you have done and for what you are almost certainly going to continue doing." Many churches tried that approach in the past and they are paying dearly for it today. But I am saying that we need to look more deeply than just threats of punishment.
What I would gladly campaign for is a sympathetic form of exile. We can afford to build incredibly expensive cages for criminals, so why not a community (the bigger the better) where they can move about as they please (with other paedophiles), but from which they will never be allowed contact with children? It need not be any more inhumane than the best TB sanitorium in the world. Treat paedophilia as an infectious disease, and isolate it.
And, for Christ's sake, stop hating them.
Note: If exile seems too extreme, then we challenge critics to suggest a softer, more loving approach that is going to effectively protect children.
