As a wave of new lawsuits reignites the Catholic church’s child sexual abuse scandal in California, NBC Bay Area sat down with a group of everyday Catholics to discuss a wide range of issues, including how the outpouring of accusations has impacted their faith.
“You say you’re Catholic, and then you wonder what that person who’s looking back at you is thinking,” parishioner Toni Wilkerson said about the ongoing scandal.
While they didn’t agree on everything, one common theme emerged from the discussion: The desire for more transparency and dialogue from church leaders.
“There've been so many [abuse] cases, but I’ve never been at a church where they openly discussed this,” Isabel Rajan said.
But that hasn’t stopped these 10 parishioners from Church of the Transfiguration in Castro Valley from having these difficult discussions amongst themselves.
Many in the group said the scandal has been deeply harmful, but none have given serious thought to leaving the church.
“I haven’t considered leaving,” Peggy Maurer said. “But what I do feel is shame and embarrassment sometimes to admit that I’m Catholic and I hate that feeling.”
Some feared for the church’s future.
“I have a 23-year-old daughter who has no interest, she does not feel comfortable in the Catholic church right now,” Mel Speed said. “It’s literally in self-destruct mode now. You look around the congregation and it’s very rare to see younger people in the church.”
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
The parishioners said it will take time to heal the wounds caused by the scandal, but they see themselves as part of the solution.
“If you love something and it’s broken, you want to fix it,” Wilkerson said. “I’m not going to leave something that’s broken. I’m going to stick around and fix it.”
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Diocese of Oakland said it recognizes that parishioners want more conversations about sexual abuse within the church, adding that anyone interested should contact their pastor directly.
Watch the video above for more from the conversation.
