And The House Came Tumbling Down

Arizona Supreme Court upholds Latter-day Saint clergy privilege in child abuse case

Utah-based church says bishops had no legal obligation in this instance to report abuse Salt Lake Tribune

I have to share my feelings on this. I know people see things differently but I personally feel like my head is going to explode over this. I cannot comprehend how the law protects a perpetrator over a child, all so they can “repent.” I would be interested in knowing how many abusers confessed to their clergy, and that child or children were not at risk after the confession. I’m going to say 0%! It just doesn’t happen. But hey, a rapist’s eternal salvation is more important than the safety of children and the trauma they will endure for the rest of their lives!

It makes me sad and angry that this law exist and that the LDS church supports this law. Change the damn law so clergy must report, not an ambiguous may, or if, or all the ways they have an “out.” (Why would they want an out?). If you agree with this law let me ask you one thing. Try to picture this scenario and it being your child or grandchild or niece or nephew and they were being abused for years by let’s just say a family member and you never knew cause the clergy never reported it or told you and the perpetrator was “repenting.” And if you don’t agree that doesn’t make you not as faithful. It’s called critical thinking on your own part. The bishop not letting parents know seems to be inconsistent with the hundreds of cases I’ve read about. And no, I’m not exaggerating. This is a terrible law and people should be notifying their state representatives that it needs to be changed. I plan on doing that but since the LDS church is based out of Utah I’m not holding my breath!

The church issued a statement saying “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints agrees with the Arizona Supreme Court's decision," the statement said. "We are deeply saddened by the abuse these children suffered. The church has no tolerance of abuse of any kind.” That’s the most conflicting statement I’ve ever read. The church agrees with the law allowing clergy to not report but they don’t tolerate abuse of any kind. Ummmm but you kind of do. You tolerate it by saying you agree that clergy should keep that information confidential which will 99% of the time result in ongoing abuse. LDS Church - you can’t have it both ways. Either you want to protect victims or you don’t. But you can’t say you do and then support laws allowing abuse to continue.

This case has been haunting me for months. And no it’s not because I was abused as a child which was asked by my therapist when sharing my frustration about it. Apparently someone has to have their own personal issues to be so outraged about this. I LOVED this therapist but I have never been back since that question was asked. It was just another person not understanding why I was outraged by this. I’m outraged that more people aren’t outraged.

I could also repeat some of the statements made to me by church leaders in different areas but I think I’ve made my point. And it may be different if this was the only case where this has happened. There are hundreds, maybe thousands. The church clearly protects the abuser over the victim. If I haven’t made my point and you have any questions or clarifications needed feel free to comment or send me a message. You can also send me your opinion and why. I promise to be as open as I can to hearing other sides.

The Arizona Supreme Court said the LDS church was not legally required to report the abuse. Is there a body that can rule if they morally and ethically should have reported?

Added: this is not me saying I hate the LDS church or that I have left or that I am leaving. I’m struggling but there are so many things I love about the LDS church and the culture and doctrine. Me disagreeing does not make me an apostate or a disgruntled member. It’s just me sharing my opinion on something that I feel strongly about. That’s all it is.