51茶馆

On Thursday, November 6th, the Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life welcomed Susan Reynolds of Emory University to deliver the Second Annual Nancy Marzella Lecture on Women and American Catholicism. Her talk, 鈥淲here are Women in the Story of Clergy Abuse?鈥� explored the role of women and girls as survivors, bystanders, whistleblowers, and perpetrators within the broader narrative of clergy abuse.

Reynolds began by considering why the public narrative of Catholic clergy abuse has centered primarily on the experiences of men and boys. She suggested that society often perceives the male-coded nature of the abuse as distinctly Catholic: the quintessential image is the priest and the altar boy. The insistence on clerical celibacy, she argued, pushed clergy into a corner, and as a result Church authorities became preoccupied with relationships that could result in children and relationships with women were strictly policed. In this environment, boys became targets, viewed as morally ambivalent and corruptible subjects. At the same time, women were viewed as suspect, non-credible, and driven by worldly motives. Reynolds noted that around one-third of minor victims of sexual abuse in the church are girls. Women and girls are not only victims of abuse by ordained clergy, but also by other men in the Church with spiritual status, which reflects a broader social pattern of using spiritual authority as an instrument of sexual manipulation.

To draw attention to these dynamics, Reynolds shared the story of one family and the systemic dimensions of exploitation that lead to their ongoing abuse. The story involved an undocumented mother and her eleven children who came to Los Angeles from M茅xico. Alone in a new country, they found a Catholic church in their community where they met a charismatic and welcoming Spanish-speaking priest. As the priest grew closer to the family, he began sexually abusing the eldest son, who was sixteen years old at the time. He also physically and psychologically abused the boy, threatening to expose his legal status if he told anyone about the abuse. Feeling powerless in the situation, the boy and his family eventually decided that their only option was to move across the country with an aunt. After learning of the abuse, the boys鈥� aunt reported it to Sister Manuela, an advocate for the Hispanic community in D.C., who reported it to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Upon investigating the priest, church officials discovered he had abused more than twenty other boys. Instead of removing him from his role, officials merely moved the pastor around between congregations. Even when he was eventually sent to psychiatric treatment, he was still allowed to supervise two ministries without any oversight from ecclesial authorities. Despite this discouraging example of abuse, Reynolds highlighted the critical roles of women in various aspects of this story as reporters, support figures, and whistleblowers. She suggested that we need to amplify such voices in order to provide a fuller portrait of those who are impacted by and impact cases of abuse.听

Towards the end of her lecture, Reynolds opened the floor for questions. One audience member asked whether clergy sexual abuse is more prevalent in the Catholic Church than in other institutions. Reynolds clarified that the Catholic Church does not experience higher rates of abuse, but emphasized that even a single case is too many. She noted that it remains important to consider how abuse is carried out within the Catholic context in particular. Reynolds voiced special concern about how such abuse intertwines acts of violence with spiritual and sacramental meaning, thereby compounding the harm, especially for children. Overall, her lecture offered a thoughtful examination of the role of women in the history of Catholic clergy abuse, underscoring the importance of amplifying women鈥檚 voices and listening to survivors鈥� stories as we navigate a path forward.