BYDGOSZCZ (POLAND)
World Crunch [Paris, France]
March 14, 2025
By Małgorzata Czajowska
In an exclusive for Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza, a bishop speaks to the journalist about why he offered money to a former altar boy who claimed to have been abused by a Catholic priest in the city of Bydgoszcz in Poland.
TW: This article contains references to sexual violence and abuse that some may find distressing.
“The bishop of Bydgoszcz showed me mercy and put the money on the table, or rather on the desk. In an envelope…”
The testimony, recounted to Gazeta Wyborcza, comes from a former altar boy who had been sexually abused by a priest dubbed Rafal K. in the northern Polish city of Bydgoszcz.
The story of the sexual abuse committed by Father Rafał K., then a priest from the parish of the Holy Polish Martyr Brothers in the Bydgoszcz housing estate of Wyżyny, was first revealed in late 2021, in the local Bydgoszcz edition of Wyborcza.
It was part of revelations that the priest had been tricking young boys into the parish house and abusing them there. As the prosecutor’s office established, the accused also invited the teenagers to the rectory to retake exams in religion. He ordered them to undress, pretended to be a therapist who treated disorders related to sexual drive. Sometimes he would blindfold the boys and then “examine the prostate” with his finger. He also measured the length of the penis without and with an erection.
The prosecutor’s office did not secure any documents confirming that the suspected priest had completed studies or any course in sexology. The priest was removed from priestly service when the case came to light.
In June 2022, Father Rafał K. received his first sentence: three years in prison and PLN 10,000 ($2,593) in compensation for two victims. The prosecutor’s office decided that this was not enough. The defense attorney also appealed the verdict. The second trial of the priest, a self-proclaimed sexologist, began in May 2023.
The court’s verdict was close to the prosecutor’s requests. Judge Krzysztof Kurowski from the 3rd Criminal Division of the District Court in Bydgoszcz sentenced the priest to 10 years of imprisonment. He also imposed a 10-year ban on practicing the profession of catechist and an eight-year ban on conducting classes with young people. Rafał K. is also prohibited from approaching the injured parties at a distance of less than 50 meters, and was required to pay the victims compensation ranging from PLN 15,000 ($3,899) to PLN 25,000 ($6,497).
His defense attorney appealed against this ruling.
“I could not cope”
Maciej (name changed) was also one of the 11 known victims of the priest.
A self-professed “lost teenager” when he came to “sexology sessions” at Father Rafał’s apartment, Maciej recounted to Gazeta Wyborcza what happened in the Bydgoszcz parish house and about his trauma. During the priest’s trial, he talked to the bishop. He did not hide the fact that he could not cope with the trauma of what had happened to him.
“I went to the bishop,” he says. “For years I could not cope with what had happened to me. I was unemployed, in complete despair, although a lot of time had passed.”
The bishop received the former altar boy. “It was an interesting, good conversation. I said that I was unemployed, that I couldn’t cope, that I had nothing to live on. The bishop left the office and returned with an envelope. There were three thousand złotys ($780) inside. He put it on the table, or more precisely, on the desk. He didn’t even want a receipt”.
Why is Rafał K. still a priest?
Wyborcza also revealed that after the trial, Fr. Rafał K. stayed in Bydgoszcz at the Diocesan Retreat House on Piaski Street, which is run by Caritas. It was there that Ukrainian women fleeing the war with their children were accommodated.
It is known that since April 6, 2020, Fr. Rafał K. has been banned from performing priestly functions based on canon 1722 of the Code of Canon Law. The ban is in force until further notice. But, still, somehow, he remains a priest.
A preliminary canonical process has been initiated against the priest in the Church, the bishop’s office confirmed. But in the meantime, the church “is obliged to provide the accused with maintenance, including accommodation.”
Maciej was stunned to find out he is still in his role. “I asked the bishop why this man is still in Bydgoszcz. Why is he still a priest? I heard that they need to clean up after the previous bishop, and that will take time,” says the former altar boy.
Somehow still a priest
When Maciej visited the bishop for the second time, he received another envelope. And this time he didn’t have to sign anything. He received two thousand PLN “for life”. “Today I have a job. I won’t even go to the announcement of another sentence, because work is more important,” he says.
He says that thanks to the Bishop of Bydgoszcz, Krzysztof Włodarczyk, he gained access to free psychological therapy. “I lost my faith in God, and even more so all trust in the Church,” he says. “However, the bishop restored it to me.”
Did the Bishop of Bydgoszcz really give money to the wronged altar boy?
“He visited me twice,” recalls Bishop Włodarczyk in an interview with Wyborcza. “Yes, I gave him money. Why? I wanted to help him, because that’s what he needed at the time. I didn’t do it for publicity. I didn’t want any signatures saying that he had received the cash. It was a gesture of mercy. Something like Lent alms. I had the opportunity to share my money, so I did.”
Why is Rafał K. still a priest?
“We have submitted letters to send Fr. Rafał K. back to the lay state, but we are still waiting for the decision of the Holy See,” says the bishop.
He also returns to the episode of placing Fr. Rafał K. in the Diocesan Retreat House, where Ukrainian women with children were staying. “As soon as I found out about it, I wanted to send him back to the Camaldolese monastery, away from the lay people. The court did not agree, because he was supposed to be under police supervision and report regularly to the police station. I explained that he would be locked up at the Camaldolese, he would have no contact with the world. They said that the requirement was that he had to report in Bydgoszcz.”