BONN (GERMANY)
La Croix International [France]
March 27, 2024
By J. P. Grayland
Studies in Germany suggest that abuse in the country’s Protestant congregations, like that in Catholic communities, is also linked to a type of institutionalized clericalism.
The sizable number of abuse cases in the Catholic Church in Germany became known for the first time in 2010. Since then, the Church has been striving to process these cases. At their plenary assembly on September 25, 2018, the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK) published a study documenting cases of abuse between 1946 and 2014. At the end of 2020, the Protestant Church of Germany (Die Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland) also began research on sexual abuse in their Churches. On January 25, 2024, this study was made public. What these two studies have in common is the role that clericalism plays in sexual abuse in Christian communities, local Churches, religious congregations, and organizations.
In the area of sexual abuse, it is clear that listening to the testimony of those who have been abused by clergy, religious and lay leaders is central because their testimonies reveal general patterns of abuse related to psycho-sexual and psycho-social dysfunctions, most of which are related to a clericalist mindset.
Protecting the institution and its clergy
Although these studies show a difference between the denominations regarding celibacy’s impact on abuse, they show a substantial similarity regarding clericalism. Abuse patterns in Protestant congregations generally include enforced discussions about sexuality and the unfulfilled sexual desires of pastors in their own families. Hence, there are many references to the influence of the social demands for sexual freedom and sexualized living as contexts of abuse.
The presence of the pastor’s family, while not completely removing the risk factor of abuse, does make the concealment of abuse more complex. By contrast in Catholic contexts, where for celibates there is an absolute prohibition against sexual activity, the experience of sexualized abuse cannot be related to social phenomena like social promiscuity or social change in the 1960s or 1970s. Consequently, where one can “blame” the outside world for the Protestant experience of abuse, the “blame” for the catholic experience must be sought within the Church itself. [Further reading: How German Catholics seek to transform Church governance]
The correlation of clericalism between both denominations could be summed up as follows: “The institution comes first before everyone and everything else!”
For both denominations, those who administer the institution (diocese, local Church, parish, religious order/congregation, Church business, and schools) of the Church work primarily to protect the institution’s reputation. Evidence shows that the “geographical solution” of moving an offender from one parish to another, one diocese to another, and one school to another has been used to protect the institution’s reputation not to heal the abused or address the offending. The various reports expose the folly of this strategy; unfortunately, what the institutional leaders seek to protect—because it is sacred to them—becomes the thing most at risk of scandal.
Functional clericalism in the Catholic context
Spiritual abuse, particularly prevalent in Catholic contexts, further complicates the issue, serving as a precursor to sexual misconduct. This insidious form of manipulation highlights the power dynamics within the clergy and underscores the urgent need for reform. This factor is almost irrelevant in cases within the Protestant context. Consequently, although Catholic perpetrators often emphasize the intellectual and spiritual distance from their victims, Protestant perpetrators draw the affected into an overwhelming adult world of marital problems and sexuality and ask the victim to become the solution to these issues.Further reading: German Protestants are shrinking in number
Clericalism and celibacy are Catholic risk factors because (1) they partly explain the phenomena of physical, sexual, and spiritual abuse, (2) they play a significant role in the formation of clergy and seminarians, and (3) they influence the structure and experience of clerical and religious life and parishes. Because clericalism and celibacy ground the clerical and religious life, those who participate in these lifestyles become immersed in a “functional clericalism” that impacts how they live celibacy. This functional clericalism is minimized by the cliché “Father knows best.” Functional clericalism is evident, too, when Father absents himself from the reality of the contemporary world by retreating into a private world of piety and liturgical practices that face the past and not the present.
Another example of functional clericalism is the unwillingness of priests to consecrate enough hosts for the people at Mass so that all can be fed from the Eucharistic Table at the Eucharist they attend. Instead, just before communion distribution, he trots off to the tabernacle to bring pre-consecrated hosts from a week ago for the people while he eats and drinks from the Eucharistic meal at which he is presiding. This functional clericalism declares: “Father matters most: the people can have what’s left over.”
Clericalizing the laity
This functional approach to the liturgy then clericalizes the laity, who also see no need to receive from the Eucharistic Table on a Sunday. Generally, because the laity has seen the functional clericalism of their priests, they, too, become functional in their approach to Sunday Liturgy and do not bother with the Sunday Mass because communion from the Tabernacle is just as good and more practical. This type of functionalism lay at the heart of the online Eucharistic liturgies streamed during COVID-19.
What is evident from research and various inquiries is that the Church sees both clericalism and celibacy as part of the sacred structure of Catholic priesthood and religious life. Because these are sacred elements, those who administer them work to protect them. Often, this approach plays badly into the hands of institutional thinking, which determines how clerics are formed and how, in turn, they and the laity respond to specific pastoral needs. In short, clericalism and celibacy are two critical influences on how the Catholic Church is administered and two guiding principles for deciding for whom the Church exists.Further reading: Behind the bold discussions of Germany’s Synodal Path
These various reports make it clear that we must listen to the voices of survivors, whose testimonies shed light on the deep-rooted issues within clerical culture. All the studies underscore the disturbing impact of a clerical mindset, which prioritizes the institution over the well-being of individuals. This prioritization manifests itself in protecting the Church’s reputation at the expense of justice and accountability.
Shielded by a facade of righteousness
While celibacy has been implicated differently in each denomination, with Protestant congregations citing the influence of societal shifts in the 1960s and Catholicism facing internal challenges, the common thread remains clericalism. In both cases, the hierarchical structure of the Church perpetuates a culture where abuse can be swept under the rug, shielded by a facade of righteousness.
Clericalism and celibacy are not immutable aspects of the priesthood; they are human constructs that have contributed to our systemic successes and failures. The Church must reckon with these realities and prioritize its members’ safety and well-being over preserving human traditions. Functional clericalism perpetuates a harmful hierarchy that alienates both clergy and laity from the true spirit of the Christian community.Further reading: More than half a million Germans left the Catholic Church in 2022
As we confront the sobering truths revealed by these studies, we need to see reform as a continual and necessary imperative if the Church is to fulfill its sacred duty of ministering to the faithful. It is time to dismantle the structures of clericalism that have allowed abuse to fester and embrace a vision of Christianity rooted in justice, compassion, and humility.
J. P. Grayland is currently visiting professor at the University of Tübingen (Germany). A priest of the Catholic Diocese of Palmerston North (New Zealand) for nearly thirty years, his latest book is titled: Catholics. Prayer, Belief and Diversity in a Secular Context (Te Hepara Pai, 2020).