Finding Grace

What would change in your world if your beloved priest or pastor became the target of sexual abuse allegations? Would you believe it? Could you believe it? What if the man you viewed as perfect and Christ-like had a hidden, secret life that only was revealed to young children or adolescents who didn't have the psychological finesse to see it as abusive or manipulative? Could you envision your spiritual leader methodically caressing a child's breast? I'm sure it is painful and shocking to contemplate how that would feel. Now imagine trying to live it. Try imagining that it is you lying on a bed, exposed in only your underwear and your beloved priest begins to narrate the details of your body. Can you bear the thought? What would you do? Not, what should you do...everyone knows the answer to that. If you knew everything this man had ever stood for was truth, compassion, and holiness, and yet, that was only a part of who he was, could you separate the two?

What if the Christ-like man wasn't just Christ-like to you, but to a whole parish, a whole community? How would you challenge an entire church to believe differently when all his actions and words were in direct conflict with the accusations against him? The humiliation felt from the abuse is but a crumb compared to the humiliation of a congregation doubting your truth. What character flaw does the accuser have that makes it so difficult to believe? What character attribute does the priest have to be defended without hesitation?

Finding Grace explores a woman's odyssey from adolescence into adulthood and her search for understanding and peace. It is an incredible journey filled with pain, humiliation, and shame, but concludes with the ulimate happy ending--the grace of God.