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Church Sexual Abuse comprises a range of illegal and unacceptable behaviors frequently perpetrated on children and adolescents by predatory priests or other church employees involving sexual assault of varying degrees. The assault can be a one-off, non-consensual scroll barevent or it might include several acts within a continuing interaction. For instance, an ongoing “trusting” interaction with a child created by the predatory behavior of a clergy associate, cloaked with the trust and respect imputed to a priest, leading to non-consensual sexual assault acts of molestation.

Within nearly all claimed Priest or Clergy Sexual Abuse situations, the short-coming by the Clergy member’s superior to fully, adequately and immediately disclose the crime to law enforcement and other authorities, or its continuing failure to investigate, address and resolve fully with the occurrence amplifies the harm on the abuse survivor, the community and potentially others. Current Church Sexual Assault cases covered in the press highlight these failures, including “pass-the-trash” scenarios where the abuser frequently a clergy in the Catholic Church, is silently re-assigned from one location to another only to continue his predatory, criminal behavior on an innocent parish community.

Priest and Clergy Sexual Assault and Justice

Not a week goes by without a news announcement coverage about sexual assault and molestation of children by pedophile clergy, or the legacy of the assault on the survivors and their families. If you are a victim of sexual assault from a priest or other clergy member, these stories are most likely to act as an echo chamber, replaying the horror, shame, guilt and other unwanted emotions hurting your well-being. Encouraged by the societal movement and other pathways that encourage them to disclose the abuse they experienced, victims of assault are increasingly employing the legal system to compensate them for the life-long harm and injury they have experienced.

If you are a victim of assault perpetrated by a priest, the impact of the abuse on your life and foundational belief system may be immeasurable. Nonetheless, holding the responsible church and institutions accountable for their crimes and indifference may offer a measure of justice and recompense to abuse survivors. Frequently, victims can assert their legal rights through confidential mediation thereby avoiding the need for litigation. However, if litigation is required, a motion might be filed where the victim can remain anonymous.

Abusive Behavior

All abusers, to varying degrees, use predatory methods which are commonly referred to as grooming, targeting a potential assault victim. Following is a survey of grooming behaviors used by predators who are in a position of authority in relation to the subordinate child.

Grooming

Grooming is a major piece of a predator’s ploy. In a church environment, the clergy member is viewed as God’s representative. Within this environment, the predator often works closely with small amounts of children, understanding each child’s needs, vulnerabilities and situations. Once a target is identified, these vulnerabilities – like tumultuous family setting, loneliness, low self-esteem, emotional neediness, attention-seeking – can be systematically leveraged in the following ways:

Trust

An assaulter will first try to get the child’s trust. This strategy is most difficult to discern as religious communities are frequently tight-knit and personal interaction with clergy is commonplace. Here, the priest can pretend sincere interest in the child’s wellbeing and groeth – both emotional and religious.

Reliance

As a predator creates a trusting relationship with the potential child-victim and oftentimes their family, the child will begin to rely more and more on the predator for whatever need it is that the priest is exploiting and fulfilling. The victim may devote more time with the priest, feeling more comfortable with the relationship and counting on its stability and security. In addition to attention and affection, the potential victim may receive presents from the priest, including valuable, intangible gifts like blessings and special recognition.

Isolation

As the grooming progresses, the predator may work to isolate the possible target. This could mean individual counseling sessions, meals or various forms of one-on-one isolated moments.

Sexualization

The predator may begin to de-sensitize the child from reacting negatively to contact, caressing and various actions that lead to sexual interaction.

priest lawsuit may begin with breaking the physical-touch barrier, or verbally, with suggestive messages to gauge the victim’s response to the progression. This will continue until the relationship advances to one of a physical, sexual nature.

Maintenance

Once the sexual relationship is created, the predator will work to keep control over the child and the continuing interaction. The predator will likely seek to manipulate the child by continuing to make the victim feel special and worthy. The predator will continue to exploit the target by whatever methods needed to maintain the immoral physical relationship.

Impact on Clergy Abuse Survivors

The impact of childhood abuse on the victim can be overwhelming and life-altering. Several priest assault survivors suffer from lifelong effects of the abuse including depression, disturbed sleeping, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse and eating patterns, and difficulty creating and maintaining healthy relationships. Individualized treatment and support groups can assist survivors overcome these effects.

Legally, a survivor of Priest Sexual Abuse may recover financial compensation from the abuser and, more commonly, from the religious organization for its failure to protect the child from the assault, as well as failures or deficiencies in its method of reviewing and resolving to reports of assault. If you are a victim of Priest or Clergy Sexual Abuse and would like to confidentially discuss your situation and your legal options, we are prepared to speak with you.