PrintShare
Peter Kohlgraf speaks during a dpa interview on the Green Sofa in Mainz. © Lando Hass/dpa
The study on abuse in the Diocese of Mainz also revealed misconduct by previous bishops. But how to deal with it? “Closing a bishop’s grave doesn’t solve any problem,” says Peter Kohlgraf.
Mainz – Even one year after the presentation of the study on abuse in the Diocese of Mainz, Bishop Peter Kohlgraf believes there is still a lot of work to be done to process it. “This study was a step,” he said in an interview with the German Press Agency in Mainz. “But we are far from finished.” He also doesn’t know whether the work can even come to an end during his time as bishop. It is clear that the communities in which pastors are accused need a lot of care.
The study encouraged a number of other affected people to come forward. “We also caught up on church procedures,” said Kohlgraf. The study and disciplinary measures triggered something in some communities. “There was massive irritation,” said the bishop. “There are always groups for whom the pastor was a good pastor, and there are those affected.” Congregations with accused pastors need to be intensively supported. There are now also new employees in the ordinariate.
“We have to think again about how we deal with the accused, not only in Mainz, but throughout the entire bishops’ conference,” said Kohlgraf. Proceedings by public prosecutors or even church proceedings sometimes take a very long time, which is stressful. A working group has been formed in the diocese of Mainz to deal with the question of how memorial culture is dealt with – also in view of revelations about the former Bishop of Mainz, Karl Cardinal Lehmann (1983-2017).
“In my opinion, commemoration cannot simply consist of erasing memories,” said Kohlgraf. It has to be dealt with productively. “Closing a bishop’s grave does not solve any problem.” Lehmann or the former bishop Hermann Cardinal Volk (1962-1982) are people from contemporary history. “We have to deal with how mistakes could have occurred in order to do things differently in the future,” emphasized the bishop. We have to look at which system led to it getting this far. Then this system needs to be worked on.
The study presented in March 2023 by the independent lawyer Ulrich Weber came to the conclusion that cases of sexual violence in the diocese of Mainz had not been consistently prosecuted for decades and were sometimes concealed and trivialized. Weber said at the time that the diocese, as a responsible institution, had encouraged sexual abuse in many cases through inappropriate handling and a lack of control. By showing solidarity with the accused and discrediting victims, parishes made it more difficult to clarify the matter and made further incidents possible. As part of the study, around 25,000 pages of files and archive material were examined and 246 personal, written or telephone interviews were conducted.
Kohlgraf now told the dpa that an advisory board for those affected is being formed in the diocese. “I believe it is important that the perspective of the people affected by abuse always comes into play.” The independent processing commission is also involved in many areas of processing. “A lot has happened, on very different levels,” emphasized Kohlgraf. dpa
2024-02-21 05:42:41
#Kohlgraf #lot #work #deal #abuse
