The German Protestant Church is involved in a sexual abuse scandal and its highest official has resigned, accused of having covered up a case that dates back to the 90s.
According to the German newspaper Siegener Zeitung, Annette Kurschus, the highest official of this institution, is accused of having been aware in the 1990s of allegations of abuse against a vicar of the ecclesiastical district of Siegen, but that she did not take action. no measure.
The suspect is being investigated by police.
The theologian, 60, has denied that she had knowledge of the abuse, but explained that she has decided to resign “to prevent (the image of) her Church from being damaged.”
“Suspicions fall on a man whose family I have been friends with for a long time,” he declared during a press conference in Bielefeld, in the north of the country.
Kurschus has indicated that he knew of “the homosexuality” of the accused, that he is married to a woman and that he was aware “of his infidelities.” He added that he tried to protect the family, but was criticized for “lack of transparency.”
“It is even more bitter because I never, and I emphasize it, I never intended to evade my responsibility, hide important facts, cover up facts or even cover up an accused person,” he insisted.
“I would have liked, 25 years ago, to have been more attentive, educated and more sensitive to the behavioral problems that would draw my attention today,” she added.
At the time of the events, Kurschus was a shepherdess in Siegen. According to the local newspaper Siegener Zeitung, a victim and three other people informed him of the accusations against the religious man who worked at the same place.
Annette Kurschus is the second woman to hold the position of leader of the German Protestant Church. The president of the synod of the German Protestant Church, Anna-Nicole Heinrich, welcomed her resignation “with respect.”
“This shows the importance that within the Protestant Church is given to actions against sexual violence,” he estimated.
With 20 million faithful, the Protestant Church represents the second confession in Germany, behind the Catholics (about 22 million).
Both have been facing a decline in the number of faithful for years.
The German Catholic Church has been in chaos for years due to allegations of sexual abuse, but until now the Protestant Church has hardly been affected.
A study commissioned by the German Bishops’ Conference in 2018 concluded that 1,670 Catholic clerics in the country had committed some type of sexual assault against 3,677 minors between 1946 and 2014, although the actual number of victims is believed to be much higher.
Compensations from the Catholic Church for victims of abuse in Germany were increased from 5,000 euros to up to 50,000 ($54,600) in 2020, but associations say the sum remains insufficient.
Payments worth €28 million ($30.5 million) were approved last year alone.
The president of the assembly of German archbishops, Georg Batzing, regretted the resignation of Annette Kurschus. Without wanting or being able to judge the reasons for this resignation, he considered that “ecumenism in Germany loses an essential driving force.”