Church Predator Abuse Information

Clergy Abuse comprises a wide-range of immoral and unacceptable behaviors frequently commited against children and teens by pedophilic priests or other church employees involving sexual abuse of varying degrees. The abuse might be a one-time, non-consensual scroll barencounter or it might involve several assaults inside a continuing interaction. For example, an ongoing “trusting” relationship with a young child spawned by the predatory behavior of a clergy associate, blanketed with the trust and respect imputed to a member of the clergy, leading to non-consensual sexual attack acts of molestation.

In nearly all alleged Priest or Clergy Sexual Abuse scenarios, the failure by the Church member’s employer to completely, adequately and immediately report the offense to police and other authorities, or its continuing failure to investigate, address and resolve entirely with the situation increases the harm on the assault survivor, the community and potentially others. Current Church Sexual Abuse cases covered in the media uncover these short-comings, which includes “pass-the-trash” situations when the perpetrator oftentimes a priest in the Catholic Church, is quietly re-assigned from one parish to another merely to continue his predatory, criminal action on an innocent parish community.

Priest and Clergy Sexual Assault & Retribution
Not a week passes without a media announcement reporting regarding sexual abuse and molestation of young children by pedophile clergy, or the effects of the assault on the survivors and their families. If you are a victim of sexual assault from a priest or other church member, these stories are most likely to act as an echo chamber, reverberating the horror, shame, guilt and other unwelcome feelings harming your well-being. Encouraged by the societal movement and other pathways that encourage them to disclose the abuse they suffered, victims of assault are more frequently employing the legal system to compensate them for the life-long damage and injury they have suffered.

If you are a victim of assault commited by a member of the church, the impact of the abuse on your life and core belief system can be incalculable. Regardless, holding the responsible person and institutions to blame for their crimes and indifference may provide an amount of justice and recompense to assault survivors. Oftentimes, survivors can assert their legal rights in confidential mediation therein avoiding the need for litigation. But, if litigation is required, a motion may be filed where the victim can remain anonymous.

Predatory Behavior
All predators, to varying amounts, employ predatory methods that are commonly known as grooming, targeting a possible abuse victim. Below is a survey of grooming actions used by predators who are in a position of authority in relation to the subordinate young child.

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

Trust
An assaulter will initially try to gain the child’s trust. This strategy is most difficult to discern as church communities are frequently tight-knit and personal relation with clergy is commonplace. Here, the predator can pretend genuine interest in the child’s wellness and development – both emotional and religious.

Reliance
As a predator creates a trusting relationship with the potential target and oftentimes their family, the child will start to rely more and more on the predator for any need it is that the priest is exploiting and fulfilling. The victim may spend increased time with the priest, feeling more comfortable with the relationship and counting on its stability and security. In addition to attention and affection, the possible victim might receive presents from the priest, including valuable, intangible gifts such as blessings and special recognition.
Isolation
While grooming escalates, the predator will try to isolate the potential victim. This might mean solo counseling sessions, meals or other methods of one-on-one isolated moments.
Sexualization
The predator might start to de-sensitize the target from reacting negatively to touching, caressing and other behaviors that lead to sexual interaction. priest abuse California might begin with crossing the physical-touch barrier, or verbally, with inappropriate messages to gauge the victim’s response to the progression. This will escalate until the relationship gets to one of a physical, sexual nature.
Maintenance
As the sexual relationship is created, the predator will try to keep control of the child and the continuing interaction. The predator will likely want to manipulate the victim by continuing to make the victim feel special and worthy. The predator will keep exploiting the target by whatever ways necessary to maintain the immoral physical relationship.

Impact on Clergy Abuse Survivors

The impact of childhood assault on the victim can be overwhelming and life-changing. Several clergy abuse survivors suffer from long-term effects of the assault including depression, disturbed sleeping, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse and eating patterns, and problems establishing and maintaining vibrant relationships. Individualized treatment and support groups can assist survivors overcome these effects.

Legally, a survivor of Priest Sexual Assault can recover financial compensation from the abuser and, more commonly, from the religious organization for its failure to shield 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 survivor 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.