Annraoi, I have little but contempt for the papacy but there is no vitriol in my pen. (Did you, living in the UK, happen to see that BBC programme by the way? I ask because it featured a number of the catholic faithful who had good reason to be vitriolic but who were fairly restrained and fair about where they directed their contempt.) And what was it in the thread title that made you think there might be some connection with traditional music?

On the power debate I am inclined to go with Amergin. But I can't say my rationale is scientific.

The same argument has been made about rape, and though my own instinct is to think that rape results from failure to control sexual urges, I readily accept that the evidence points to it more often being about power (ie abuse of power). It seems reasonable to extrapolate from rape to child abuse, because in the latter case the abuser is even more likely to be in a position to exert power over the victim - especially if the abuser wields authority vested in him by the catholic, or for that matter any, church.