End the Sexual Abuse in Churches
By Eunice Boeringa
Sexual abuse in churches is a threat that many of us would like to ignore. Sexual abuse is upsetting enough, but the thought that it occurs in the church is horrifying. As I read the recent Messenger article about the Crosiers and their dealing with sexual abuse I was saddened for all the men who have served their community with dedication and love. Since sexual abuse in the church hit the headlines, both Catholics and Protestants have struggled with this issue. It seems to me there are three areas which need to be addressed. First of all, when abuse has occurred, there must be an open acknowledgement of the crime and apologies must be made. No one can blame everyone in an organization for the sexual misconduct of a particular member of the organization. What can be expected is the organization will take sexual abuse seriously and will handle complaints in an honest and open manner. Secrecy and silence are tools of perpetrators. Frank and open discussion of the problem and how to eliminate it is needed. The Crosiers have made a valiant effort to be forthcoming about the problem. Their statement of apology should help to bring some measure of healing to the victims of abuse and reassurance to those who look to them for spiritual leadership. Second, steps must be taken to protect children from predators. It was good to read the Crosiers have instituted reporting policies and prevention policies. These steps should be implemented by everyone who works with children. Police background checks are essential for any organization. Policies that forbid one-on-one contact with children are also important. Windows on doors or open doors help to eliminate the possibility of secrecy. Parents should insist that such policies be implemented. But apologies and new protective policies are limited in their ability to bring healing. Third, perpetrators must be denied any access to children again. There must be an end to hoping the problem will go away in a new environment. The worst part of the sexual abuse scandal is not that abuse happens, but that abuse has been ignored and repeated. There must be an end to perpetrators being reassigned and moved from one church to another. What victims need to hear most of all is that sexual abuse will not be ignored, but that every effort will be made to bring perpetrators to justice. Apologies are nice, but justice satisfies. Coming from a fellowship with problems of its own, I know the helpless feeling of being innocent and being associated with shameful acts totally outside of my sphere of influence. My husband and I started in ministry about the time of the Jimmy Swaggart scandal. The issue was not sexual abuse of children, but adultery in the clergy. In that case our entire fellowship took strong action in addressing sexual misconduct, but our Minnesota superintendent went one step further. Clarence St. John gathered all pastors and announced a zero tolerance of sexual immorality in the ministry. This was not just a strong statement; he promised us that any pastor accused of immorality would be suspended from ministry until the charge was either validated or disproved. If the charge was confirmed, that pastor would lose his license to preach. He would not be allowed to pastor again. That’s zero tolerance. Sexual abuse is a hard thing to deal with, but every organization that deals with children and all parents of children must take these steps to assure a safer environment for our children. Open acknowledgement of problems and policies to create a safer environment are good steps to take, but a policy of zero tolerance will help to end the abuse and keep our children safe. Guest columnist Eunice Boeringa is the director of the Onamia Depot Library. She and her husband pastored the Living Water Assembly and are now involved with the Vineland Native American Chapel.
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