Recorded abuse cases in French missionary society ‘much lower’ than reality

“It is likely that the actual number of cases of sexual violence perpetrated by MEP priests is much higher,” said the report by Sheffield-based GCPS Consulting, which found just 63.

A report into clerical sexual abuse in the Foreign Missions of Paris (MEP) said the 46 accusations found against priests of the society from 1950 to today was too low to be credible.

The report, commissioned by the MEP, said it could only deal with 350 dossiers already reviewed by the society’s permanent council, while many of its Asian missionary postings in far-flung places were difficult to control or monitor.

“It is likely that the actual number of cases of sexual violence perpetrated by MEP priests is much higher,” said the report by Sheffield-based GCPS Consulting. In all, just 63 cases of abuse within the MEP were examined, it said.

“The MEP is aware … that the real number of victims is probably higher than the 63 people identified,” an official communiqué said. “The society considers this reality with the utmost seriousness.”

It added that the MEP’s Superior General Fr Vincent Sénéchal hoped “the receipt of this report will pave the way for a future marked by broader communication on preventive actions and safeguarding practices at MEP”.

Founded 366 years ago to evangelise Asia, the MEP currently numbers 150 priests in 14 countries. The society’s problems emerged last year when a former superior, Bishop Gilles Reithinger, stepped down as an auxiliary in the Archdiocese of Strasbourg aged only 51.

His predecessor as MEP head, Bishop Georges Colomb of La Rochelle, resigned in 2022. Both men deny accusations of impropriety that have led to both a canonical inquiry and, in Colomb’s case, one by civil authorities as well.

The report recorded “worrying practices at the MEP headquarters” in the 2010s, when the two men were superiors, with “an ambiguous atmosphere or even solicitations, as well as dynamics of control and power games”.

It said most MEP priests interviewed blamed this on a homosexual atmosphere, but the records showed significantly more assaults on females – 36 – were than the 23 on men. 

“The question of sexual orientation seems to take precedence over that of consent and abuse of power,” the report said.  The MEP may now consider appointing a full historical commission to investigate further.

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