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	‘The Confession’ Tackles Priest Abuse By Andy Eckardt MSNBC March 23, 2010 http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/03/23/2238742.aspx MAINZ, Germany – "The Confession," a play that recently opened in the German city of Regensburg, could not be more timely or its location more symbolic. The play tells the story of an orphaned choir boy who was abused by his priest, and later, as an adult, abuses his own child. In order to protect his son from the same destiny, the main character is determined to kill himself and his boy. But first, he confronts the priest, his former guardian and tormentor, in a confession that culminates in a disturbing dispute between the two men. "When we planned this small production a year ago, we could not have imagined that it would be such a fitting sign of the times, and we have been overwhelmed by the attention it has received recently," said Friederike Bernau, a spokesperson for the Regensburg theater. The play openly addresses the problem of child abuse behind church walls – a highly sensitive topic that is currently rocking Germany, with much of the controversy centering on the city just outside the theater’s doors. At the renowned Regensburg choir, as well as three Catholic schools in the diocese, there have been allegations of sexual and physical abuse. The Regensburg diocese announced Monday that four priests and two nuns are under investigation for sexual abuse; most of the alleged incidents occurred in the 1970s, though one was in 1984, the diocese said. The allegations of sexual abuse in Regensburg have attracted particular attention because Pope Benedict XVI’s brother, Msgr. Georg Ratzinger, directed the choir there from 1964 to 1994, raising questions about whether he would have known about sexual abuse at a school linked to the choir. The pope’s brother has said that he knew nothing about the sexual abuse, but apologized for slapping students during his tenure. So far, more than 250 people are alleged to have been abused at church-run schools in recent decades, German media reports say. Shocked audience The subject matter of the "The Confession" hits home among the play’s cast members. Miko Greza, the 60-year-old actor who plays the role of the priest in the play, has said he was a victim of abuse. "I know what we are performing here and what we are talking about in this play. I have experienced it myself," Greza told "Bayern 2," a local Bavarian radio station during a recent interview about the play. Greza declined to discuss his personal experience with abuse any further during a phone interview with NBC News. Michael Haake, who portrays the father in the play, said the acting is a challenge and emotionally difficult. "We fully engage in the role and live through the conflict of the characters," said Haake, 43. Both actors said the audience’s reaction to the play is quite different from any other productions they have performed in before: On most nights, there is very little or no applause at the final curtain, which leaves them facing an auditorium full of dismayed viewers. "In other plays I look forward to the final applause with a grin and a smile, but here I remain quite serious and don’t really feel happy," said Greza. "We have received e-mails from people, who afterwards apologized for not applauding at the end." But he was quick to add, "It is the right play at the right time." His co-actor Haake agreed, "The present debate shows that we are on the right path with our play and that we are presenting something without making a judgment." People who have seen the two-man play say that it definitely hits a sensitive nerve. "It was shocking, I felt frozen afterwards because the small auditorium, like a church, creates a very intimate atmosphere and puts you very close to the strong performance of the actors," said Sigrid Grabmeier, a Regensburg resident and member of a church reform group called "We Are Church." "It was a very moving play because I had not been confronted with this topic in this way before," said Eberhard Duenninger, 75, who went to school in Regensburg and grew up in what he says was a "very conservative Catholic family." He added, "At times, it felt like a nightmare, very disturbing." Criticism mounting While not an overwhelmingly Catholic nation, Germany is the pope’s homeland – Pope Benedict XVI, formerly Joseph Ratzinger, was born and educated in the predominantly Catholic state of Bavaria and was the archbishop of Munich. The pope himself has become the subject of controversy because a priest accused of molesting boys was allowed to transfer to an archdiocese overseen by him as then Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger. The priest was eventually allowed to return to pastoral work, including work with children, and was later convicted of sexual abuse. The Munich diocese insists that the decision to reassign the pedophile priest to pastoral work was made by Ratzinger’s then deputy, without any involvement by the future pope. The scandal is taking its toll among Germany’s Catholic flock. A poll recently published by Germany's Emnid Institute found that 71 percent of Germans believe the abuse scandal has damaged the credibility of the Catholic Church. Eighty-six percent of those polled contend the Vatican has failed to explain the allegations of abuse in church-run schools and institutions sufficiently. "The recent increase in the number of people who are leaving the church clearly shows that the image of the Catholic Church has been damaged," said Heidemarie Tonner, another Regensburg resident. "In my opinion, the hierarchical structures in the Catholic church are no longer compatible with our modern-day perception of life," added Tonner Despite an official apology to victims of child abuse by priests from Archbishop Robert Zoellitsch, the head of Germany’s Catholic Church, many are still looking to Rome for more. "I would expect the pope to address the German Catholics directly and more quickly," said Wolfgang Troidl, a 45-year-old public school teacher who also lives in Regensburg. "The renewal process will not happen quickly, but I can see that the dams are bursting," Troidl added.
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