ENGLAND
The Guardian
March 5, 2018
By Harriet Sherwood
Independent inquiry hears survivors faced years of institutional cover-up and denial
The Church of England prioritised its reputation over the safety of children, born from an “arrogance which equates the church with God”, the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse has heard.
Speaking on the first day of three weeks of hearings into the C of E’s handling of abuse cases stretching back decades, the specialist abuse lawyer Richard Scorer said survivors had faced years of institutional cover-up and denial.
The C of E could not be trusted to put its own house in order, said Scorer. “As the established church, [it] claims to offer moral guidance and moral leadership to the country. Yet clerical sex abuse cases and the scandals associated with them powerfully undermine that claim.”
Scorer, who represents 21 survivors, said: “It must be clear now that if you want to abuse children, there is no more effective way of terrifying and silencing your victims than to claim to have God on your side.
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