Catholic Curia Suggests Rape Victim Enjoyed It

A Catholic curia—a group of Vatican bureaucrats who assist the Pope in the exercise of his primatial jurisdiction over the Roman Catholic church—in Poland has asked for a court to determine whether or not the rape victim of a Catholic priest took “pleasure in the intimate relationship.”

The victim, Janusz Szymik, was 12 years old when the abuse began and the Catholic Church wants to know if he enjoyed being sexually assaulted by a priest.

Last year, Szymik  launched a civil case against Bielsko-Żywiec diocese seeking roughly $1 million in compensation from the curia, which he argues is responsible for abuse he suffered at the hands of a priest—named only as Jan W. under Polish privacy law—in the 1980s.

A church court had previously found Jan W. guilty of sexual offences against Szymik, and in 2017, Jan W. was given a five-year ban on conducting priestly ministry, hearing confession, and was ordered to live in isolation.

Cut to today, and the curia, really the Catholic Church, is demanding  “evidence from an expert sexologist on the determination of the claimant’s sexual preferences, in particular determination of the claimant’s sexual orientation.”

And they would like to question Szymik on his relationship with the priest, including him “showing pleasure in maintaining an intimate relationship with Jan W.” and even “deriving benefits [from it], including material benefits.”

Victim blaming is a Catholic thing, unless the victim is Catholic …

The curia also argues that, although Szymik was an altar boy, because meetings between him and Jan W,--the adult—took place outside the church they were not related to Jan W.’s ministry.

Note to child raping Catholic priests: do it outside of the church and you’re safe.

The curia claims Szymik “participated voluntarily” in his rape because “the sexual contacts did not take place during the performance of the duties entrusted to him.”

Again, pedophiles, take your business outside and the church will protect you.

In response to the publication of the diocese’s legal submission, Tomasz Terlikowski, a prominent Catholic commentator, called the questions the curia proposes asking of Szymik are indicative of a “pedophile’s model of thinking” and will cause “the victim harm again.”

Again, keep in mind that Szymik is still suffering the effects of being raped by a priest when he was twelve years old, and that the Catholic Church thinks because he may have enjoyed it, or because it didn’t happen on church property, that it really didn’t happen at all, or just doesn’t matter.

Also keep in mind that child rapist Jan W. is suspected of raping other boys while a priest, and rather than being punished of jailed for his crimes, he is quietly living a life of seclusion on the Catholic Church’s dime because they care more about their image, and their bank accounts, than they do the victims of child sexual abuse.

Notes from Poland