Reputation of progressive German Cardinal crashes and burns over abuse cover-up

Mainz abuse study: Cardinal Lehmann made serious mistakes

The study on sexualised violence in the diocese of Mainz attests that the three former bishops Albert Stohr (1935-1961), Hermann Volk (1962-1982) and Karl Lehmann (1983-2016) were devastating in their handling of sexual abuse.

Lehmann is said to be at odds with the public media and his personal actions. Abuse victims almost never played a role, rather attention was paid to protecting the Catholic Church system.

The authors of the study, Ulrich Weber and Johannes Baumeister, credit the current bishop, Peter Kohlgraf, with a willingness to learn and come to terms with the situation. Kohlgraf takes accusations very seriously and is very consistent in his dealings with the accused. The authors of the study consider it "highly plausible" that there are 181 accused and 401 affected persons. However, this does not mean that the other cases are implausible; they are also presumed to be true.

Of those affected, 59 per cent are boys or men and 41 are girls or women. Half of them had been victims of a serious or particularly serious crime. The main focus of the crimes was during the term of office of Bishop Volk (1962-1982). However, the dark field was still large and could only be illuminated in part.

The authors of the study label Stohr's handling of abuse with the words "admonish and transfer"; Volk's is "play down and conceal". Accordingly, Lehmann's time as bishop can be divided into three phases, which are described with the terms "warding off and pretending", "talking out and defending" and finally "admitting and coping". Lehmann, however, had never regarded sexual abuse as a matter for himself as the most senior cleric and had lacked awareness of the problem. The Bishop had "at no time lived up to his own standards".

According to the authors of the study, Kohlgraf, on the other hand, wants to take responsibility and stands for setting a course and transparent communication. The diocese had cooperated in the preparation of the study. Weber said: "We were able to do what we wanted.

The study identifies as risk factors for abuse, for example, very close ties to the church and a difficult personal situation of those affected. Often, a mishandling of power and trust also favoured abuse. Other reasons are an exaggeration of the priesthood and a lack of personal maturity of clerics in dealing with celibacy. However, it is necessary to look at each case individually, because many church structures have favoured abuse and created an environment for it.

According to the authors, the report entitled "Experiencing - Understanding - Providing" (EVV) is not comparable with other studies such as the nationwide MHG study published in 2018. For example, Mainz did not only look at acts of clergy, but of all church employees. In addition, relationships among adults were also included. The study is structured according to three questions: What happened, how could it happen, and how was it dealt with? The authors put the cost of the study at a "high six-figure sum".

Source