A new abuse allegation weighs on the Catholic Church. A victim expresses itself after years, and makes the true extent in the case of Peter H. clear.
Munich – A previously unknown case of abuse in the Catholic Church is burdening the Archdiocese of Munich. A former priest abused boys several times in Bavaria. Although the church knew about it, there were no consequences, as research by Correctiv and Bayerischer Rundfunk show. Now one of the victims of Peter H.
It has been known since 2010 that Peter H. sexually abused several boys in his work as a priest of the Catholic Church. The fact that the church itself is looking away is no secret either, although the BR reports that the diocese of Essen had been aware of the danger posed by H. since the early 1970s. Instead of prosecuting the priest, however, he was only transferred to the Garching community in 1980. There were further cases of sexual assault there, the true extent of which is now made clear by the testimony of a victim.
Abuse in the Catholic Church: Bishop Defended Peter H.
Stefan, whose last name remains anonymous, was twelve when Peter H. abused him for the first time in 1990. The Catholic priest had meanwhile been found guilty of ten abuse cases, about which the congregation knew nothing. H. invited the boy to him more often at that time, as the BR reports. At first he helped Stefan with his homework, later he let him stay with him. Eventually the parish became troubled due to the proximity between the priest and some of his acolytes. According to the research of Correctiv and the Br, Peter H. was defended from exactly the place that was supposed to be watching over him.
| organization | Roman Catholic Church |
|---|---|
| head | Pope Francis |
| Members (as of 2017) | 1,313,000,000 |
| Priest (as of 2017) | 414,582 |
Accordingly, H. was in therapy when he was active in Garching. One psychologist named one of the conditions for continuing to work as a Catholic priest to be supervision by a supervisor. This role was to be taken over by a retired bishop who, however, covered H. at the crucial moment. The other requirements of the psychologist were also not controlled by the church. According to this, the priest should no longer work with young people and shouldn’t drink alcohol.
New allegation: Catholic Church knew of abuse allegations
According to research by Correctiv and BR, the Catholic Church also knew about Stefan’s abuse. The internal verdict, however, was mild, with the priest’s actions classified as minor or moderate. It wasn’t until 2010 that Peter H. was retired after some of his acts were leaked to the public.
The new information should also play a role in an expert opinion, which should be published in about a week. A law firm was commissioned by the church to collect information on cases of abuse in the Archdiocese of Munich. According to the BR, Stefan spoke to the reviewers.
Recently, appalling numbers of cases of abuse in the Catholic Church in France * came to light: Around 3,000 priests and ecclesiastical laypeople are said to have sexually abused no fewer than 330,000 minors in the past 70 years. (vbu) * fr.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
