Abuse by a priest, religious, or church employee is a grave evil and a profound betrayal of trust. Your anger (at the person, at the institution, at how it was handled) is proportionate.
You are not obliged to report to the Church in order to report at all. Civil authorities can be contacted directly, and doing so is not disloyalty to your faith.
The seal of confession does not bar reporting abuse
The seal of confession is absolute for a priest hearing a confession: he may never disclose what is confessed to him. But this has no bearing on you: you are always free to report abuse to civil authorities, regardless of anything said in a confession by anyone, including the abuser.
Reporting to police or child protective services is strongly encouraged. It is not a betrayal of the Church; covering up abuse is what has betrayed the Church.
Reporting options
You can report to local police or your state's child protective services regardless of when the abuse occurred. Most U.S. dioceses also have a victim assistance coordinator and a published reporting line, separate from parish staff, specifically for this purpose: your diocese's website will list it.
You are never required to report to the diocese before or instead of civil authorities, and you can do both, either, or neither.
Your standing in the Church
Nothing about being abused by clergy affects your own standing in the Church or your worthiness to receive the sacraments. You remain fully a member of the Church; the person who harmed you does not represent it.
What Scripture says
- Ezekiel 34:2-4
Scripture, in context
Matthew 18:6
But he that shall scandalize one of these little ones ... it were better for him that a millstone should be hanged about his neck.
Translation: Douay-Rheims (public domain)
Common misconceptions
- “Reporting a priest to police harms the Church.”
- Concealing abuse is what has harmed the Church's credibility; reporting protects others and is consistent with justice, which the Church teaches is a genuine good.
- “The seal of confession means abuse confessed to a priest can never be reported by anyone.”
- The seal binds only the priest confessor regarding what he heard in confession. It does not prevent you, or anyone else with knowledge of abuse, from reporting to civil authorities.
Questions people are often afraid to ask
A prayer when the wound came from someone who spoke for God
God, this person claimed to represent you and used that trust to hurt me.
They do not speak for you. They never did.
Help me find you again, apart from them. Amen.
Practical next steps
- · You can report directly to local police or your state's child protective services at any time.
- · Your diocese's victim assistance coordinator (listed on the diocesan website) can support you through reporting to the Church, if you choose to do so.