Do Jehovah Witnesses permit victims of child sex abuse to speak at their home Kingdom Hall or in the Kingdom Hall where they were abused, following settlement agreements?

by Sol Reform 5 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse

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  Sol Reform

  Or is that considered Gossip in the religion? The Archdiocese of Dubuque which recently completed structured settlement agreements with several persons who reported that they were sexually abused as minors by priests of the archdiocese; has committed itself to several activities, to raise awareness of the effects of sexual abuse of minors and to invite victims to come forward and seek help.

  1. The archdiocese will continue to publish periodic notices in the archdiocesan newspaper, The Witness, and in several secular papers inviting persons who as minors were sexually abused by church personnel to come forward and encouraging them to contact law enforcement personnel.

  Throughout the archdiocese there are about 3,000 icons (sacred depictions) of St. Raphael the Archangel with information on how to reach the Archdiocesan Victim Assistance Coordinators.

  2. The archdiocese will allow victims whose claims were found credible the opportunity to speak at their home parish or in the parish where they were abused, if they wish to do so. This will take place following a Sunday Mass.

  http://www.arch.pvt.k12.ia.us/Witness/PDFs/ArchdioceseSettlementAgreements.pdf PAGE 2 September 1, 2013 Archdiocese Archdiocese announces settlement agreements Sexual abuse occurred over 35 years ago For The Witness DUBUQUE — Following mediation, the Archdiocese of Dubuque announces that it has completed structured settlement agreements with several persons who reported that they were sexually abused as minors by priests of the archdiocese. Twenty-six individuals retained the services of a Waterloo law firm to present their cases. All of the abuse, according to the claims, took place more than 35 years ago. Most occurred in the 1950s and 1960s. Of the 10 priests named by the claimants, nine had been named previously and were already included on the “Table of Accused Priests” found on the Archdiocesan Web site. Priests accused of sexual abuse of minors and named in this mediation are the following: the Reverends John T. Reed (deceased 1996), Joseph Patnode (deceased 1977), Patrick McElliott (deceased 1987), William Schwartz (removed from the priesthood in 2005), Louis Wunder (deceased 1990), Louis Wendling (deceased 1969), Peter Graff (deceased 1976), Robert Reiss (removed from the priesthood in 1997, deceased 2005), Allen Schmitt (removed from ministry 2002), and Robert Swift (deceased 1980). More than one victim made claims against Mc- Elliott, Patnode, Schwartz, Reed, Reiss, Wunder, and Wendling. To settle all 26 claims, the archdiocese agreed to pay the sum of $5.2 million to the law firm representing the plaintiffs. The archdiocese also committed itself to several activities, many of which it has been doing for years, to raise awareness of the effects of sexual abuse of minors and to invite victims to come forward and seek help. Among these commitments are the following: 1. The archdiocese will continue to publish periodic notices in the archdiocesan newspaper, The Witness, and in several secular papers inviting persons who as minors were sexually abused by church personnel to come forward and encouraging them to contact law enforcement personnel. Throughout the archdiocese there are about 3,000 icons (sacred depictions) of St. Raphael the Archangel with information on how to reach the Archdiocesan Victim Assistance Coordinators. 2. The archdiocese will allow victims whose claims were found credible the opportunity to speak at their home parish or in the parish where they were abused, if they wish to do so. This will take place following a Sunday Mass. 3. The archbishop continued the longstanding practices of writing to victims and of visiting privately with victims who requested such a meeting. 4. The archdiocese offered to pay for counseling and therapy for victims for up to 12 sessions. Archbishop Michael Jackels and Archbishop Emeritus Jerome Hanus apologize to the victims and their families. It is their hope that this settlement will be supportive of them. They assure all the victims of their prayers for them and their families. They express their commitment to support them in their efforts to achieve spiritual and emotional well-being. Priests who abused are a disgrace to the vocation and a scandal to the faithful. The vast majority of priests are good and holy servants of God and God’s people. They give of their energy and time most generously. They abhor sexual abuse and work hard to ensure that the parishes, schools, and other institutions of the archdiocese are safe. The priests want to help victims experience reconciliation, healing, and justice. Many have contacted and supported victims of sexual abuse. The same can be said for other members of the church. The Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People calls all to heed Jesus’ call to show mercy and compassion to the least ones. “Jesus extended this care in a tender and urgent way to children, rebuking his disciples for keeping them away from him: ‘Let the children come to me’” (Mt 19:14). The Archdiocese of Dubuque continues to commit itself to the protection of children, striving always to make the way safe for them. Archbishop Michael Jackels and Archbishop Emeritus Jerome Hanus apologize to the victims and their families. More online at www.arch.pvt.k12.ia.us/ ProtectionofChildren/ Posters of the Archangel Raphael are distributed throughout the archdiocese with information on how to reach the Victim Assistance Coordinators
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  PYRAMIDSCHEME

  They try like hell to sweep it all under the rug and you're asking if they speak about it in the Hall? Thats the last place they would talk about it. They want the sheep to believe it doesnt happen and it's all a Satanic conspiracy.
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  flipper

  No they do not. What Pyramid Scheme said, I agree with.

  I mean- back in 1998 when I was still attending and I remember right after a Sunday WT meeting , after final prayer- a middle aged " brother " jumped up out of the audience and grabbed the microphone from the elder on stage and yelled, " that brother sitting over there ( pointing at the man ) brother so and so is a child molester and he's molested 7 children over 20 years here ! If you want to protect your children you should know this ! " Then the elder on stage grabbed the microphone from the man and said, " we are handling this brothers and sisters, it's being taken care of " .

  The man who verbally exposed this who ran up on the stage became my new hero. But it wasn't until I exited the Witnesses 5 years later that I understood WHY this man felt he needed to go to the extent he did to expose the child abuse because the elders were and still are instructed to keep all such crimes as child abuse confidential so therefore parents of other children do NOT get informed if kids are getting molested in congregations ! It's disgusting and dangerous to say the least to other children and criminal as well in aiding and abetting child abuse in JW congregations !

  WT Society child abuse " policies " ( if you can call them that ) are not " policies " at all- just rules and instructions handed out to JW elders to keep child abuse top secret so the WT Society doesn't get sued up the a$$ by some loose lipped WT appointed elders spilling the beans. WT leaders are only concerned about financial $$$$$ losses in child abuse lawsuits, not children's welfare at all. Peace out, mr. Flipper
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  flipper

  SOL REFORM- AS a matter of fact, I'll go one step further and say that many Jehovah's Witnesses who HAVE reported child abuse happening to police within congregations have been DISFELLOWSHIPPED for doing so for alleged gossip or slander. There may not be as much DFing for this now but as recently as within the last 8 years or so JW's were getting DFEd for exposing child abuse when going to the media or police authorities. WT leaders have changed their policies now on that - but it shows you how hardline and " protective " they were about their dirty little secrets getting out. Peace out, mR. Flipper
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  Vidiot

  flipper - "...WT Society child abuse "policies" ( if you can call them that ) are not "policies" at all - just rules and instructions handed out to JW elders to keep child abuse top secret so the WT Society doesn't get sued up the a$$..."

  Except that lately, they are facing more and more lawsuits.

  Reducing or delaying potential litigation may indeed have been one of the original reasons for keeping the problem quiet, but recently, darker and more disturbing possibilities have occurred to me.

  Authoritarian high control groups - by their very nature - foster an internal environment in which sexual abuse inevitably becomes institutionalized and virtually impossible to remove. We're already aware that the problem goes back several decades within the WTS, but I submit that - because of what we now know about authoritarian groups - it may be far more widespread than anyone had previously thought.

  If this is truly the case, and that fact actually became common knowledge among the R&F that thousands of multiple offenders - past or recent - could be found in virtually every single congregation (particularly after decades of finger-pointing at the RCC), the potential for another mass Exodus similar to post-1975 would be a real possiblity.

  Despite what many think, the majority of JWs are decent people. Just how many of them do you think could bring themselves to risk that kind of exposure to their kids? I submit that hundreds of thousands would find all kinds of excuses to go inactive, DA, or fade.

  In addition, we've all read about the allegations and rumors about Greenlees and Jaracz.

  Historically, regimes that have a habit of displaying leniency or engaging in secrecy with regard to egregious sex crimes have almost always conducted themselves that way specifically to protect guilty leadership, sometimes going so far as to influence the legislative process.

  Is it so far-fetched that other members currently on the Governing Body might have dirty skeletons in their closets that they fear may be exposed?
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  Narcissistic Supply