Heal Me, Father

For Dr. Thomas Plante, rooting out a priest likely to commit sex crimes is a lot like stripping away the layers of an all-too-familiar fruit.

"There are many ways to peel an apple," he said. "You slice at it from different angles."

Few have compared priests to the fruit of original sin. But after 14 years of experience working as a psychological counselor for Catholic priests from dioceses around the country, Plante has rare credentials. Chair of the psychology department at Santa Clara University and editor of the book "Bless Me Father For I Have Sinned: Perspectives on Sexual Abuse Committed by Roman Catholic Priests," he has screened 150 potential priests and nuns for emotional problems when they're applying to take their vows. And he's treated about 50 priests accused of sexual misconduct, including those charged with pedophilia or sexual abuse.

The growing scandal over priest sexual abuse brought American cardinals to the Vatican this week, where they are meeting with the Pope to talk about dealing with the crisis and strategies for preventing abuse.

Handling Priest Sexual Misconduct

During a telephone interview from his home office, Plante said he's not sure how new church policy will change his work. He added that he's worked with numerous dioceses that have handled priest sexual misconduct "quite professionally," adding that his own tests for uncovering sex abuse trouble have been very effective.

"I'm often able to discover things that the church doesn't during its own process of screening," said Plante. "But I don't decide if priests are accepted or not. I say this is who this person is, and the Church decides themselves."

Plante, a practicing Catholic, said the church first approached him in 1988, asking him to evaluate those interested in becoming priests and nuns. He said Catholic dioceses approached him because they liked the idea of having a psychologist who's in the church.

During each psychological evaluation, Plante spends a half-day with a potential priest or nun. He first asks questions about family history, sexual and sexual abuse experiences and educational backgrounds. The second aspect of his testing focuses on questions about religious life, exploring "which of the vows are going to be the hardest to manage."

Plante said that if a priest admits celibacy will be a struggle, it's not automatic cause for concern. Although many church critics view celibacy vows as a cause of sexual abuse, he sees them as separate issues. He believes his clinical, psychological and personality tests, combined with the applicants autobiographical statements and church evaluations, develop a comprehensive view of each applicant.

Deception and Treatment

He has only had a few people who were "deceptive," and said most potential priests he has analyzed were honest and straightforward. And he said applicants are not predisposed to pedophilia.

"Sexual abuse of adolescents occurs in every segment of society," Plante said. "The issue of men committing sex crimes with minors is not unique to the Catholic Church."

For example, his research has found that two to five percent of the country's 600,000 priests, a number which includes retired priests, are sex abusers, compared to about eight percent of the general American male population.

But the percentage of priests who are pedophiles is disputed by Tom Economus, executive director of The Linkup, a national organization for victims of clergy sexual abuse. He has argued that six to 16 percent of priests are pedophiles.

"The Christian clergy ends up being a safe dating service for pedophiles," Economus wrote on his group's website.

Plante declined to discuss specific priests' cases because of confidentiality agreements, but said religious superiors from various dioceses usually call to arrange therapy sessions for their priests.