“From the 1940s to 2002, more than 100 priests and other employees of the archdiocese committed horrific and repeated abuses against the most vulnerable children in their communities,” the report said.
“Members of the church hierarchy staunchly refused to admit allegations of child sexual abuse for as long as possible,” he added.
The document was published with redactions with names and references that identified nearly a hundred people. The list of alleged perpetrators includes dozens of priests, brothers and at least two nuns.
“The overwhelming scale of abuse exposes the fault of the church hierarchy,” the report said. “The high number of abusers and victims, the immoral behavior of abusers and the frequency with which abusers are given the opportunity to continue to abuse children is surprising,” he added.
Attorney General Anthony Brown said his office launched a grand jury investigation in 2018 into the archdiocese of about 518,000 believers in 145 congregations.
“The investigation investigated complaints of sexual abuse of minors by clergy, theologians, deacons and other members of the archdiocese,” the prosecutor said.
The Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore in western Maryland has about 550 priests, 160 deacons, 55 friars, and 803 nuns, and administers 5 hospitals, about 30 nursing homes, 20 dioceses, parochial and private schools, and four universities.
Brown said the investigation also covered “attempts by Catholic Church leaders to conceal and cover up this sexual abuse with hundreds of thousands of documents dating back to the 1940s prepared by the archdiocese.”
On Tuesday, before a judge allowed the prosecution’s report to be published, Archbishop William Lori issued a message urging Catholics to pray for survivors of abuse.
“First of all, I now pause to acknowledge and acknowledge that the horrific and horrific abuse that was the subject of the prosecution’s investigation was a gross betrayal and had devastating consequences for the victims who survived,” Lori said.
SNAP, the largest network for survivors of Catholic clergy sexual harassment, said in a statement that the Maryland district attorney’s report contains “more names of perpetrators than church officials have disclosed.”
The group asked Archbishop Lori to explain “why his list was inaccurate and why he answered what church officials were hiding.”
Source: Ultimahora
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Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
