The comments come from Hans Zollner SJ, a distinguished psychologist with a doctorate in theology.

He made the comments in an interview with Infovaticana.

"Celibacy is not a direct cause of abuse; what can become a risk factor is a ministry poorly lived and not fully accepted," says Zollner.

He says it is a misconception to think that abolishing celibacy would put an end to abuse in the Church.

Zollner, a former member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, also serves as the director of the Institute of Anthropology at Rome's Gregorian University.

"All scientific reports, including those commissioned by non-Church institutions, conclude that celibacy in itself does not lead to abuse.

"Therefore it is wrong to say that with the abolition of celibacy, there would no longer be cases of abuse in the Catholic Church" he emphasised.

He said the core issue is an abuse of power.

Zollner places the focus on the celibate's leaders, the demands of the apostolate and an individual's inner life balance.

"If a priest lacks balance in human, spiritual and professional aspects, that inner void and unfulfilled desires can lead him to commit abuse" he explained.

The psychologist also dismissed the idea that there is a simple, one-to-one relationship between homosexuality and abuse.

"Human behaviour is complex and many male child molesters do not identify solely as homosexual" he said.

He referred to the 2011 U.S. John Jay Report which categorises such individuals as 'occasional abusers' and notes that instances of abuse against girls have risen with the advent of co-ed schools and an increase in female altar servers.

On the subject of the profile of abusers within the Church, Zollner identified four recurring psychological patterns: the narcissistic abuser, the obsessive, the insecure, and the true pedophile - as defined in psychiatric terms.

Commenting on the seminary training of priests, Zollner highlights the critical role of seminary formation and education.

"It's essential that seminarians not only acquire knowledge but also life skills.

"They need to be fully prepared to lead a balanced life and to excel in their future ministries," he said.

Zollner says that victims and survivors need a support network comprised of empathetic listeners and professionals from various fields.

"Those who have suffered should seek justice and surround themselves with people who can genuinely assist them in healing," he recommended.

Source

• CNA

Jesuit Fr Hans Zollner made the admission last Thursday to a group of clergy survivors of sexual abuse.

Speaking in an online session, Zollner was asked if there is recourse for those who feel their cases have not been properly handled.

There are several avenues for an appeal if survivors feel that their bishop or diocese has improperly handled their case, Zollner replied.

There are theoretically various routes in Vos estis lux mundi (a sweeping set of abuse reform laws issued by Francis in 2019), he said.

"I can also tell you that very often I realize that it's not working," he added.

He encouraged survivors in those situations to "document everything".

He also agreed Vos estis was not being applied consistently or transparently. In Poland, ten bishops have been "basically dismissed" but that has not happened everywhere.

He admits too, the lack of transparency is often "connected to something that I would describe as complicity in just trying to preserve the good name of one particular person".

At the same time, he said such reasoning is irrational.

"By doing so, you harm much more the reputation of the person and much more the reputation of the institution," Zollner said.

Another aspect of Vos estis which Zollner criticised is its unhelpfully broad definition of a "vulnerable person" who could be at risk of abuse.

It defines a "vulnerable person" as "any person in a state of infirmity, physical or mental deficiency, or deprivation of personal liberty which, in fact, even occasionally, limits their ability to understand or to want or otherwise resist" an abuse.

He said that survivors can lack support in the US because of the country's litigious culture.

For many in the Church "the most important priority" is attending to "the advice of lawyers". This in turn prevents Church representatives from sitting down and listening to survivors because they think they are exposing themselves to risk.

Zollner also suggested periodic change in the leadership of religious communities or dioceses could prevent abuse.

"If you have a bishop who is 25 years in the same diocese," many things may become so "habitual" and "unconsciously accepted".

In these cases "the danger of becoming abusive" grows "exponentially year after year".

He urged the Church to make supporting survivors a primary priority.

"Today, it is our mission to listen to survivors and that means investment of space, personnel, formation."

Hans Zollner SJ is a newly-appointed consultant to the Diocese of Rome's office dedicated to safeguarding minors and vulnerable people.

"I am committed to listening to survivors and to promoting education and formation in the field of safeguarding, and look forward to continuing to do so in this new role," he wrote on 3 March, the day his appointment was announced.

"It is my hope that this new endeavour with the Diocese of Rome, as well as my continuing role as director of the Institute of Anthropology, will further the mission of making the world a safer place for children and vulnerable persons."

Source

• NCR
• America

But the 56-year-old Jesuit priest, who is director of the Institute of Anthropology at the Rome-based Gregorian University, believes the CEF should also publish the names of those bishops in order to avoid creating a general suspicion of the entire hierarchy.

He explained further in this exclusive interview with La Croix's Loup Besmond de Senneville.

What's your reaction to the revelations made by the French bishops' this week?

Hans Zollner: First of all, I'm really shocked and surprised.

This brings to light a vast failure of the institution over the course of decades. That's very clear. But paradoxically, I also see a big step forward in this move by the French bishops, even if it comes quite late.

However, there's an essential dimension that's missing: the French Bishops' Conference should publish the names, if this is legally possible.

Without this, there is a risk of creating a generalized suspicion of all bishops.

We must always admit and tell the truth, with the necessary clarity.

Should we move towards transparency of canonical sanctions?

This is a debate that has been going on for years.

It seems clear to me that decisions should be published according to the rules of transparency invoked at the summit on sexual abuse that Pope Francis convened at the Vatican in 2019.

As we can see, we're fooling ourselves if we think we can hide things in the digital age; sooner or later, things come and there's a scandal.

This is a rule of communication that we have not yet learned.

Should changes be made?

Yes, they must be made.

We in the Church have not yet understood how communication works in today's world.

We have to keep in mind that things always come out sooner or later.

Therefore, we must be transparent and sincere while respecting civil law.

As far as the transparency of canonical sanctions is concerned, it is also necessary that the victims have access to them.

This is not the case today.

Should the processes for appointing bishops be reviewed?

We have to differentiate between the issues.

On the one hand, we can never force someone to tell the truth if they do not want to reveal it.

This means that if a candidate has committed prejudicial acts and no one says so, and he does not reveal them himself, no bishop appointment process can take this into account.

On the other hand, changes could be considered for the groups of those questioning the candidate, for example, by turning to people outside ecclesial circles who have known or collaborated with the candidate for the episcopate, even in other contexts.

• Loup Besmond de Senneville has been a journalist with La Croix since 2011 and a permanent correspondent at the Vatican since 2020.
• First published in La-Croix International. Republished with permission.

Father Hans Zollner SJ said progress is being made to deal with the problem of clerical sexual abuse.

Speaking of recent reforms ahead of this week's three-day summit on child protection taking place in Poland, Zollner said new legal tools drafted over the past few years mean bishops know what's required of them.

While there's still a lot of work needed regarding awareness and safeguarding, on a general level, people in the Church now are taking the problem of clerical sexual abuse "much more seriously," Zollner said.

Pope Francis has worked hard on the problem of clerical abuse and the urgent need for proper handling of cases that arise, Zollner noted.

His work has resulted in new legislation for Vatican City passed in May 2019. This requires all clerics and religious to report abuse cases to Church authorities, including abuse committed by bishops or cardinals. In December 2019 Francis also abolished the pontifical secret in clerical abuse cases.

Besides the above, Zollner says last year the Vatican released its handbook on handling abuse cases, which outlines the procedures to follow if an ordained minister is accused of abusing a minor.

Given the clarity of these arrangements, Zollner said bishops "have no excuse" not to follow them. The lifting of the pontifical secret specifically "gives no excuse whatsoever to deny collaboration with state authorities," he added.

A workshop on "Safeguarding God's Children" was held at the Polish summit this week.

The workshop aimed to help increase awareness of clerical abuse throughout central and eastern Europe. It also sought to inform bishops of their current legal responsibilities and the procedures to follow if allegations of abuse arise.

Learning these best practices is of special relevance in Poland. Over the past few years, massive public clerical abuse scandals have emerged. Within the past year, 10 bishops have been removed from their positions and sanctioned by the Vatican, for abuse and cover-up.

Most Polish bishops are currently being scrutinised as scandals continue to come out.

Although most of the abuse cases rocking Poland are decades old, the mishandling of cases has been damaging to the Church's image, Zollner said. He suspects other countries will discover abuse cases when they start investigating.

The workshop also addressed the problem of clerical abuse from a theological and spiritual perspective.

Zollner said his biggest piece of advice is to "acknowledge the truth."

"Despite the fact that it may shock you, it may challenge your image of the Church, of Church representatives, including priests and bishops; it may challenge your faith in God. Despite all of this, we need to face it," he said.

"We have to stand with all those who have been harmed and we have to share the harm that has been done by the hands of those who spoke and acted in the name of God."

In a video message sent to workshop participants, Pope Francis said that "Only by facing the truth of these cruel behaviors and humbly seeking the forgiveness of survivors will the Church be able to find its way to be once again confidently considered a place of welcome and safety for those in need."

Source

• CruxNow
• Image: The Catholic Leader

Zollner, who is the president of the Centre for Child Protection (CCP) at the Gregorian University says it's all-important to control and guide sex abusers and "to define exactly what they may and may not do, whom they may and may not meet and how they use the internet."

Given the critical importance of keeping close tabs on known abusers, the Church should provide places for them to live on a comprehensive basis.

Just what that accommodation would be like and how it would be managed would be determined according to local cultural norms, he suggests.

"This kind of establishment should be particularly applicable in western, highly specialised societies. In other parts of the world, where communal responsibility is more paramount, parish or spiritual communities could possibly find a way of controlling priest abusers and making it impossible for them to abuse again," Zollner told an Austrian religious affairs programme.

Examples of detention houses for sex abuse perpetrators can be seen in the United States, where they have been used for decades. Offenders are given the option of going to such centres, which are described as "something like a prison". They are located in remote regions and residents are subject to a strict regime with curfews and contact restrictions.

"We know from surveys that a high percentage of sexual abusers are likely to have relapses, that is, to abuse again, although they have served a prison sentence, had therapy and fulfilled other conditions. After that, no one controls them any longer - neither society nor the Church," Zollner says.

Once a prisoner is released, "the bishop or the provincial can no longer control or supervise the perpetrator and that is a quandary we have to live with."

Zollner's main concerns are always about the extent perpetrators are prepared to acknowledge their own guilt and are prepared to work at ways of trying to avoid abusing again. "This is something that you cannot enforce. Unfortunately, there are perpetrators who will not accept that they have destroyed children's and adolescents' lives. They see themselves as the victims," he explains.

The Church's situation regarding how to cater for abusers is difficult. On the one hand, the Church has a duty to look after the perpetrators, while on the other it faces accusations of once again thinking more of the perpetrators than the victims, Zollner says.
It's therefore important to remember that providing lifelong detention facilities is about preventing more minors from becoming victims.

German theologian and psychotherapist Wunibald Müller is welcoming Zollner's suggestion. By setting up prison-like centres for paedophile priests, the Church will be able to protect both the public and the abuser priests. In this way, the Church could "show that it is really trying to deal with the problem," Müller says.

Müller recalls visiting the Vianney Renewal Centre in Missouri (pictured) for study purposes a few years ago. "Celebration of the Eucharist takes centre stage and being able to keep up a spiritual routine is all-important for the abuser priests' process of self-healing. It can only be guaranteed in church-run centres," he says.

Source

• The Tablet
• Image: St Louis Post-Dispatch