study
Abuse in the Protestant church: 1,259 accused
The study on sexual violence in the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) and the Diakonie documents at least 1,259 accused. photo
© Julian Stratenschulte/dpa
Abuse in the church used to be about Catholics – that’s over: For the first time, scientists are presenting figures on sexual violence in the Protestant church. The result is clear.
A study on sexual violence in the The Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) and Diakonie have documented at least 1,259 accused people over the past few decades. The presented study by independent scientists speaks of the “tip of the iceberg”.
The determined case number of 2,225 affected people is based on files from the regional churches and the diakonia, and cases known to the regional churches and diaconal organizations were also included. Based on their method, the scientists come to an estimated total of 3,497 suspects.
Compensation payments can be requested
The EKD initiated the study in 2020. The aim was to analyze Protestant structures that promote violence and abuse of power. The scientists were not able to evaluate the personal files of all pastors and deacons, but primarily disciplinary files. The study was financed with 3.6 million euros. As an umbrella organization of 20 regional churches, the EKD represents 19.2 million Protestant Christians nationwide.
Those affected by sexual violence can currently apply for individual voluntary benefits. According to the EKD, these are based on compensation for pain and suffering and are usually between 5,000 and 50,000 euros. By the end of 2022, the regional churches of the EKD had reported 858 applications for such recognition services.
Those affected: Need help from the state
When presenting the study on sexual violence in the Protestant church and diakonia, those affected called for the processing of cases and structures to be pushed forward even more – also with the help of the state. “We need the state to assume responsibility here. Because it has been shown again and again that the church is not a counterpart for those affected,” said Katharina Kracht, representative of those affected and a member of the research association’s advisory board, on Thursday at the presentation of the study in Hanover. External experts and complaints bodies are needed.
Kracht emphasized that processing is the supreme discipline. From their point of view, the regional churches lack competence and probably also interest in actually uncovering cases. “If such investigations are not undertaken, perpetrators will remain undetected.”
Although the study comes late, it is important for those affected because they were included in the investigation, said Kracht. She complained that the Protestant Church could have acted long ago. The study can therefore only be a beginning. “If the EKD now wants to retreat back into the backroom until the synod, it will be a huge disappointment for the many people affected.” No more time should be wasted. “It’s enough, it’s been long enough.”
In her case, she had to wait years for an explanation. Kracht was severely sexually abused by a Protestant pastor in Nenndorf near Hamburg in Lower Saxony in the 1980s and 1990s. As it only later emerged, the pastor, who died in 2013, had abused other girls both in Nenndorf and in his previous parish in Wolfsburg.
“No comparisons” with the Catholic Church are possible
The number of cases is not directly comparable with the results of a study on sexual violence in the Catholic Church that was published in 2018. After evaluating almost 40,000 personnel files from the period between 1945 and 2014, 1,670 Catholic priests and deacons were accused, to whom 3,677 children and young people could be assigned as those affected. At the time, scientists emphasized that the number was “a lower estimate.”
“No comparisons” could be made with the Catholic Church or other institutions, said study director Martin Wazlawik from Hanover University. “The numbers in no way suggest a lower number of accused in the Protestant church and diakonia.”
The forum study looked at all those working in Protestant life, including home educators, church musicians and volunteer youth leaders. It is expected that other affected people will come forward.