[Via Malaysia Herald]

A few months ago, a book with an eloquent title was published: Heillose Macht — literally, “Power empty of salvation.” Many priests and laypersons, both Church employees and volunteers, relate here the abuse of power that they have personally suffered in the Catholic Church, which they have experienced “as a place of despotism and humiliation”.

Numerous reactions to these accounts show that they are talking about something with which many people in the Church are familiar — but something they don’t dare to talk about except in a “safe space”. The stories are about the abuse of power, about contempt for persons, about a lack of respect in the Church. Such experiences are not limited to the German-speaking area, but occur everywhere in the world, as I myself know from my involvement in international projects and worldwide networks.

Something is fundamentally wrong if people need safe spaces…