Spanish Archbishop Denounces Instrumentalization of Abuse - Only 0.6% Linked to the Church
While condemning homosexual abuse cases within the Catholic Church, he argues that focusing almost exclusively on ecclesial cases risks obscuring the true scope of a crime that affects society as a whole.
Referring to official reports, Archbishop Sanz Montes emphasizes that the majority of abuse cases occur in non-religious contexts: within families, schools, sports organizations, residential care facilities, and other civil institutions.
According to Archbishop Sanz Montes, if the true goal is justice for all victims, then governments and public institutions should assume responsibility for abuses that occurred under their oversight or within their spheres of competence.
Furthermore, the Archbishop argues that a society that trivializes sexuality, weakens moral reference points, and allows unrestricted access to harmful material - such as online pornography - creates conditions in which abuse is more likely to occur.
He criticizes political agreements that single out the Church for financial and moral responsibility while failing to establish equivalent mechanisms for victims abused in other environments.
Public Numbers Substantiate the Archbishop
Monsignor Sanz Montes refers generally to the Defensor del Pueblo/Ombudsman.
Here are the specific statistics drawn from the report “Sexual abuse within the Catholic Church and the role of public authorities”, commissioned by Spain’s Parliament and published by the Defensor del Pueblo/Ombudsman in October 2023.
The anti-Catholic report is based on a nationally survey of 8,013 adults conducted by the polling firm GAD3, as well as nearly 500 victim testimonies.
According to the survey, 11.7 percent of adults in Spain reported having suffered sexual abuse as minors. Of these, 0.6 percent said the abuse was committed by Catholic clergy or religious.
When abuse in broader religious settings (including lay personnel in Church institutions) is included, the figure rises to 1.13 percent.
Picture: Jesús Sanz Montes © wikipedia, CC BY-SA, #newsMhhfpibquc