Beyond Belief: Sexual Abuse By Clergy In Religious Institutions (Part 2)

Religious people frequently turn to their faith to give them a sense of comfort and reassurance during times of crisis. But if the crisis they are facing involves abuse by a clergy member of their church, mosque, synagogue or temple, the person they might have otherwise turned to for help could be the person causing the harm.   

Sadly, while precise statistics can be difficult to establish, research into this largely underreported crime suggests abuse within religious institutions by clergy members is not uncommon. And, while the most well-known and widespread religious sexual abuse scandals involve Christian denominations, non-Christian religions are not immune to these heinous acts.   

In this second part of a two-part blog on clergy abuse, I explore what we know about rates of abuse among clergy within religious institutions, describe examples in both Christian and non-Christian religions, and conclude by explaining how survivors of this abuse can seek justice for what has been done to them.

Rates of Sexual Abuse Among Clergy and Within Christian Religious Institutions.

We know that sexual abuse and sexual assaults by members of the clergy is widespread. Determining just how widespread can be a challenge.   

Highly publicized scandals involving the Roman Catholic Church led to studies focussing on abuse within the priesthood. Research on abuse in the church in the United States between 1950 to 2002 found that four percent of active priests during the period were subject to allegations of abuse (molestation of children).   

However, these statistics were based on reports to Church dioceses (religious administrative units). The general reluctance of survivors to come forward with allegations, and the specific reluctance of religious adherents (or their parents) to make allegations against a religious institution, suggests the true extent of abuse is much greater. These statistics also focus solely on minors rather than on sexually assaults or other forms of sexual harassment.   

Conversely, statistics collected by Protestant denominations sometimes merge sexual abuse and sexual assault with the larger concept of sexual misconduct. Sexual misconduct definitions and policies differ amongst denominations.

Some denominations consider any sexual activity which is contradictory to church teachings (such as extra-marital relations, premarital sex, etc) on the part of clergy to be clergy sexual misconduct when compiling statistics. Others restrict clergy misconduct to only include sexual behaviour that may or may not be criminal, but where there is a power imbalance that makes it inappropriate and/or nonconsensual.   

According to a 1984 survey published in the World Council of Churches publication "When Pastors Prey," 39 percent of Protestant clergy admitted to having sexual contact with a congregant and 12.7 percent had had sexual intercourse with a congregant.

A 2019 survey by the Southern Baptist Convention found that five percent of American Protestants have left a congregation because they felt issues relating to sexual misconduct and abuse not being addressed. The number rose to 10 percent among respondents between the ages of 18-34, and nine percent of respondents within this demographic reported leaving a congregation because they did not feel personally safe.   

News stories relating to incidents of clergy sex abuse and assault, both past and present, involving Catholic priests are disturbingly bountiful. Websites have also been created to record these incidents. Similarly, published reports of sexual abuse by pastors and clergy from a variety of Protestant denominations are quite prevalent.

Non-Christian Clergy Abuse.

Although there is a paucity of statistics on the rates of sexual abuse and assault within non-Christian religions in North America, it is undeniable that acts of sexual violence are not limited to certain faiths.   

Within the Jewish religion:

• Toronto Rabbi Heshi Nussbaum, who assaulted young boys in his care, was the subject of recent documentary;
• Researchers in Australia have produced "Jewish Communal and Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse: a Critical Review of the Literature";
• Jewish charities that combat domestic abuse have reported on myths and misconceptions of this abuse within the Orthodox community. Sexual abuse within this community, which has been estimated to be four times greater than in the general population, is also the subject of the film One of Us, and research into effects on religious observance by survivors.   

Within the Buddhist religion:

• A Buddhist monk has created a blog to help identify and prevent abuse by "gurus," while a Dutch Buddhist journalist has similarly worked to combat this abuse;
• A Halifax-based Buddhist organization, Shambhala International, which has more than 200 meditation centres around the world admitted to sexual abuse by its teachers;
• A Buddhist monk in Winnipeg was sentenced to 11 years in prison for sexually abusing two girls.   

Within the Muslim religion:

• Imams in Surrey, Toronto, Calgary, Port Coquitlam, Brampton and Scarborough have been charged with various offenses relating to sexual violence
• Urban Muslims and other Muslim organizations have held conferences on child sexual abuse within the Muslim community.   

Within the Sikh religion:

• In Winnipeg, three priests were charged with sexually assaulting a child in the 1990s.
• In Surrey, a priest and teacher at the Khalsa School of the Fraser Valley was charged with six counts of sexual offences involving children, while a Gurdwara Dukh Nivaran Sahib employee was arrested in connection with a sexual assault on a teenager.
• The Sikh community across North America has also begun to discuss other cases of sexual abuse by religious leaders.

Within the Hindu religion:

• An Abbotsford priest was charged with sexual offences relating to two girls who are members of his congregation.
• A court ruled that a Hindu priest had offered to pay off a victim in exchange for dropping sexual assault charges against a temple president.

What Can Survivors of Clergy Abuse and Assaults Do?

Every survivor should be supported as they choose their own path forward. Whether that path includes therapeutic counselling, pursuing criminal charges and/or a civil claim against an offender, or choosing not to do anything at the moment, it is essential that survivors consent to and control their own participation in whatever process they choose.

Canada no longer has statutory limitations for civil or criminal legal actions dealing with sexual abuse and sexual assault. This means that even historic sexual abuse claims can be brought to court. In civil cases, even if the individual abuser has since passed away, the religious institution or other religious leaders whose negligent actions or inaction facilitated the abuse can often be named defendants in a claim; these claims often result in settlements that compensate survivors.

According to the three largest insurers of religious institutions in the United States, sexual abuse is the second highest loss claim made by religious institutions. The Catholic Church, which has already paid out an estimated $4 billion in settlements, may be looking at paying out billions more as more American states make changes to statutory limitation periods that have restricted historical sexual abuse lawsuits.

We Can Help.

Some religious (and other) institutions dismiss sexual abuse and sexual assaults by authority figures within the institution as a few rotten apples who are not reflective of the bunch. They do a terrible disservice to survivors by failing to reflect on how the institution may have enabled this sexual violence. Having to confront their own liability by way of a civil lawsuit can sometimes spur positive change within the institution.

As a personal injury law firm focused on sexual abuse and sexual assault cases, Jellinek Ellis Gluckstein views our work with people who have experienced institutional abuse as a way we can help both individual survivors and potentially protect other people from suffering similar abuse within these institutions in the future.   

With great empathy, compassion and understanding, our Toronto sexual abuse lawyers listen to survivors and advocate on their behalf in a manner that always puts their needs and best interests first. If you or a loved one has experienced abuse by clergy members or other leaders within religious communities or institutions, contact us to learn what we can do to support you on your path to healing.