The sex abuse scandal that has so far cost the U.S. Roman Catholic church over two billion dollars, is now spreading to Europe and elsewhere. Victims have surfaced in Ireland, Italy, and Pope Benedict`s home archdiocese in Germany.

As in the U.S., allegations of cover up abound with some paper trails leading even to Benedict when he was head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.  Instead of reporting to police, they would deal with it by internal, secret, tribunals or simply reassign the offending priest to another parish.

Two particularly disturbing cases involved students at deaf schools run by the church. The abuse took place over decades with hundreds of victims. Only recently have former students come forward to reveal the extent of the problem.

The offending priests and lay workers are commonly referred to as "pedophiles," but many of the victims were adolescent boys. Technically, a pedophile molests prepubescent children. But once the victim reaches puberty, it is no longer considered pedophilia.

In the sodomite community, the teenage male is the preferred target by seasoned homosexual men for two reasons. First, they are more likely to be free of AIDS or the 50 other sexually transmitted diseases circulating freely among homosexuals. Second, many homosexuals still prefer the partner to be somewhat girlish, not yet fully masculine.

This has led some observers to label the offending priests as homosexual, rather than pedophilic.

This fits with other evidence that the priesthood appears to be a magnet for homosexuals. Some writers have placed the percentage at near 40 percent of the active priests and seminarians.

The Vatican scrambles to deny that the mandate for celibacy of priests and nuns is partly to blame, pointing to other cases of "pedophiles" in Protestant churches.

But, popery ignores the Bible`s admonition about spiritual leaders being married and proven capable of managing their families before being allowed to lead the church. Moreover, "celibacy" and "chastity" are not viewed as the same by the pope. We assume that they both mean no sex outside of marriage. Technically, celibacy only means not to marry, while chastity refrains from all sexual activity.

The priest`s vow is celibacy (no marriage) not chastity (no sex.) Where Roman Catholicism dominates the culture, the people generally turn a blind eye to the lack of chastity in their celibate priests. Part of what turned Charles Chiniquy against popery was the lack of purity in his fellow priests. In his autobiographical book, 50 Years in the Church of Rome, he describes their drunken licentiousness.

In another book, The Priest, the Woman and the Confessional, Chiniquy details the intense, sexualized, interrogation that some priests use in probing wives and daughters about their sexual behavior and fantasies.

This was supposed to uncover hidden sexual sins so that they could be confessed and absolved and not damn the person to hell. Chiniquy considered some parts of his description so obscene that he only printed it in Latin. While Roman Catholicism poses as "just another denomination," its true purpose is clear: spiritual bondage through a counterfeit "church."

Soul winners, we need to help bring each precious soul who is caught in this web of spiritual deceit to the Truth that will set him free.

Besides these two Chiniquy books, Chick Publications has a variety of tracts, books and DVDs to help you witness to Roman Catholics.

They pose as our brothers and sisters in Christ but this harlot church is soundly condemned in Revelation 17 and 18. We must help them "come out" to freedom in Christ. (See Rev. 18:4.)