What did parishes in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising notice when their priest sexually abused children? Richard Kick hopes to find answers to this question on a bike tour organized by the independent advisory board for victims. It takes him through the southeast of the diocese – a region with a particularly high density of perpetrators.
“Since the trip to Rome, we have become part of the public eye,” says Richard Kick. The spokesman for the independent advisory board for victims in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising is referring to the pilgrimage bike tour to Pope Francis in May last year. A group of people who had experienced sexual abuse in the Catholic Church had traveled to the Vatican amid great media attention to present their concerns and their criticism of the way the church was being dealt with, together with supporters. The cyclists also addressed both issues during their stops at bishoprics. “Since then, around 100 more victims have come forward,” says Kick. On June 16, the group will set off again with the Sunday bells ringing at 9:45 a.m. from the cathedral square – this time to the southeast of the archdiocese. The confident title of the seven-day tour: “Here we are.”