I have received many responses to my last post regarding Fr. Jmes Jackson’s guilty plea in a Federal court to receiving CSAM (child pornography). While most comments were sad or hopeful, a few were ugly and bitter. People naturally feel angry and betrayed at such moments and, to be clear, I am neither positively asserting Father’s guilt or innocence. My only purpose was to ponder the pecular circumstances of his case.

I have since obtained newer information which offers more clarity regarding his plea. Even so we may never know the actual degree of Father’s moral culpability. For instance, what are the possible effects of a 20 year old Right Orbitofrontal Brain Tumor on his behavior, or could some early childhood sexual trauma have been a contributing factor? Such questions are admittedly far beyond my pay grade. It now appears that he did knowingly receive and view CSAM although there is no indication of his ever “acting out” or attempting any kind of grooming or predatory action against minors. In fact, it seems that many of the images found in his possession were “virtual” computer generated images, or CGIs. It now seems more probable is that he suffers from some compulsion or addiction to (mostly female) child porn images.

We will never know what early influences or later life situations may have triggered such a compulsion. It is a sobering reminder that each and every human alive is to some extent broken. I myself am no exception. My mother often said, “there but for the grace of God go I.” That is why in our private judgments I believe that it is always best to err on the side of charity. This is not to excuse any deviant behaviors or to hide one’s head in the sand, but neither should we let our emotions or imaginations run wild, especially when we do not have all the relevant facts.