In this episode of “Deliver Us,” we’re asking what justice looks like for survivors. What does the church need to do? What models of justice can we look to in this unique crisis?
We look at the differences between criminal and financial justice, speaking to experts like Marci Hamilton, the founder and CEO of Child USA. We ask Marci how extending the statutes of limitations could help survivors, and we hear from Cardinal Dolan about what a “victim compensation fund” is. Teri Anulewicz, a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, has been grappling with these questions of justice as a lawmaker and a Catholic mother. She joins this episode to offer her perspective.
Justice, transparency and healing are all connected, and we find that current statutes of limitations can work against all three, especially in cases of child sexual abuse.
I am a survivor of of abuse by two priests in the Archdiocese of Detroit. I have begged, tried, urged, asked to receive a just settlement form the Archdiocese. hey have refused at every turn, All I have ever received is some help with counselling. They really wish for me to go away.
Read the book, Ethical Loneliness: The Injustice of Not Being Heard by Jill Stauffer.
She details what it takes for reconciliation to occur after heinous and systematic injustice. From what I can see, the institutional church has no plans to humble themselves so that true reconciliation can occur.
Why use a photo of a young girl at Confession?