Toronto Therapist says child sexualized by clergy often suffers feelings of shame, guilt, mistrust, he says years, I say, rest of life

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Having assessed many victims of clergy abuse, Dr. David Wolfe sees that long after the abuse has ended, the scars remain.

"Children who are victims of abuse by people in a position of trust suffer life-long consequences," said Dr. Wolfe. "When a child is victimized by a member of the clergy, they often suffer feelings of shame, guilt, and mistrust many years later.

"These offenses also have negative effects on the religious faith of the individual as well as on their relationships with other adults, which in turn can lead to more problems." Healing and recovery from abuse is made more difficult when persons or institutions minimize, deny, or avoid responsibility.

(Wolfe is Director of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)'s Centre for Prevention Science.)
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At age 62, I'm not going to have a dramatic change with a whole new life any time soon.

For me, these were lifetime consequences..