Victims of abuse by nuns affiliated with the Catholic Diocese of New Jersey are speaking up and sharing their stories in an attempt to raise awareness around Catholic sexual abuse. Although the Archdiocese of Newark and the Dioceses of Camden, Metuchen, Trenton, and Paterson released the names of 188 priests and deacons accused of sexual abuse earlier this year, victims rights groups claim that the list left off the names of many other abusers, including nuns.

According to one victim who spoke to National Public Radio, she was 15 when a nun who taught at a Catholic high school near her home called and invited her to perform at an upcoming Mass. After the young woman played her guitar at the Mass, she continued to receive invitations from the nun, who quickly became close to her family. Although she was initially flattered by the attention, things quickly took a turn. The victim claimed that while on an outing, the nun gave her tea that had been laced with intoxicants. After she drank the tea, the victim claims she was taken to a bedroom where she passed out. She claims that this was the first of many times that the nun would sexually assault her over the next decade.

While sexual abuse allegations have been made against Catholic clergy members for decades, the majority of these claims involved sexual abuse by Catholic priests. However, according to the Huffington Post, many victims are now speaking up to say that their claims of sexual abuse perpetrated by nuns have gone unheard for years.

According to victims and their advocates, this silence is partly due to a lack of information regarding abuse by nuns. The watchdog group Bishop Accountability is trying to rectify this lack of information. So far, the group has compiled a list of approximately 100 names of nuns who have been credibly accused of abuse.

Fox New reports that, although the number of victims who were subject to childhood sexual abuse by nuns affiliated with the Catholic Diocese of New Jersey is much smaller than the number of victims of Catholic priests, these victims say that all abusers in leadership positions in the Catholic Church exploit the same authority and power.

In May 2019, Pope Francis issued a new decree requiring that allegations made against male and female Catholic clergy members are reported to church leadership. Prior to this order, allegations against nuns were treated differently than those against priests. Under the new decree, whistleblowers who bring attention to abusive Catholic clergy have been promised protections. Additionally, dioceses will be required to have a system to receive claims confidentially. Although the decree does not require dioceses to report these abuses to the police, many victims and victims advocates are pleased with the new ruling and are hopeful that it will allow more victims to come forward with their stories.

If you were a victim of childhood sexual abuse by a nun affiliated with the Catholic Diocese of New Jersey, you may qualify to hire an attorney and file a class action lawsuit against your abuser and the organization harboring them. Victims may be able to sue for damages stemming from their experiences, including pain and suffering.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.