Clergy Sexual Abuse Is About Power

Sexual misconduct occurs among ministers at a rate higher than among other trusted professions such as doctors and lawyers, according to Joe Trull. The retired seminary ethics professor recently spoke to a ministerial ethics conference at Baylor University’s Truett Seminary. The event was reported in the Feb. 24, 2006, edition of THE BAPTIST STANDARD.

At its heart, says Trull, clergy sexual abuse represents betrayal by a minister who abuses the trust of a vulnerable and wounded person. “Clergy sexual exploitation is not primarily about sex. It is an abuse of power expressed in a highly destructive sexual manner,” he asserted.

Though recent news reports have highlighted the issue of pedophile priests in the Roman Catholic church, studies across denominational lines have demonstrated consistently that about 10 to 12 percent of ministers acknowledged engaging in sexual intercourse with church members, and roughly one-fourth to one-third admitted to sexually inappropriate behavior. In more than 90 percent of the cases of sexual abuse in Protestant churches, the misconduct occurs between a male minister and female church member.