Abuse in the diocese of Mainz: played down and concealed for decades

The abuse study by the Diocese of Mainz shows that sexual violence within the church was played down, concealed and not prosecuted appropriately for decades. The study criticizes Cardinal Karl Lehmann.

In the diocese of Mainz, too, cases of sexual violence have been played down, concealed and not prosecuted appropriately for decades. This is the conclusion reached by the independent Regensburg lawyer Ulrich Weber in his study published today.

It says: “The diocese, as the responsible institution, has in many cases encouraged sexual abuse through inappropriate handling and lack of control.” After reviewing around 25,000 pages of files and 250 personal interviews, he named 401 victims and 181 accused, 65 percent of whom were clerics.

Words and deeds diverge

The report was harsh on the former cardinals Hermann Volk (1962-1982) and Karl Lehmann (1983-2016). During Volk’s tenure, it was about “not causing a public nuisance”. The image of the Catholic Church should not be soiled. An eye for the suffering of those affected was “not available”.

Cardinal Lehmann behaved in the same way in the first years of his tenure. Later he was open to the problem of sexual abuse. Nevertheless, his behavior shows a peculiar ambivalence. Lehmann showed in interviews that he had dealt with the problem intellectually. Nevertheless, he never made it a top priority, but handed it over to his vicar general. “He never fulfilled the claim he had formulated in his own words for dealing with sexual violence in the diocese of Mainz,” said Weber.

Difficulty: inability to speak in the parishes

In the Mainz report, lawyer Weber wanted to disclose less legal and more systemic reasons for the abuse. In addition to the well-known exploitation of power and trust, which is often spiritually inflated in the Catholic Church, he mentions an inability to speak in the parishes. According to Weber, according to his research, in some communities there is still no open culture of discussion. But if one had talked about sexual violence at an early stage, Weber says, one would probably be much further along in dealing with it today.

Structural features of abuse are important because they help address the issue across specific societal groups such as churches, sports clubs or schools.

“No more untouchable monuments”

The Bishop of Mainz, Peter Kohlgraf, who did not know the content of the report beforehand, spoke of “terrifying results” in an initial statement. People and their faith and trust have been destroyed. Referring to his predecessor Cardinal Karl Lehmann, who has not only enjoyed a great reputation in Mainz, he said: “For the sake of the truth for those affected, there must be no more inviolable monuments.”

The diocese of Mainz wants to comment in detail on the abuse study in a press conference next Wednesday. The spokesman for the affected organization “Eckiger Tisch”, Matthias Katsch, called for the SWRto set up an independent commission to solve the crimes. If it was previously assumed that 50 accused priests were traveling in the Mainz area, this number has now multiplied. This is frightening, says Katsch.