About celibate and sexual assault

Thursday, November 4, 2021 (10:22)

I read the following heading (didn’t dive much deeper): Chinese tennis star accuses former top Communist Party leader of sexual assault, triggering blanket censorship.

This is an example of why I doubt that priests, compared to other men, are somehow more likely to become a sexual offender. At least not because of their celibate life. I believe that it is rather their situation as a person of trust, to whom even an adolescent is called to confess their deepest secrets in order to receive absolution.

This is a systemic problem in the Church: only priests (males) can deliver the sacrament of reconciliation. Maybe a realistic solution is to say that also nuns can deliver it. Or, thinking further into the future, I can imagine that any trained lay person should be able to deliver it. Why not?

Are there any scientific studies about this particular question whether celibate life increases the probability of becoming a sexual offender?