The $120 million dollar award got the
attention of the world. Yet those who have wrestled for years with the
complexities of clergy sexual abuse (CSA) cheered loudest when we heard
the clarification offered by the Dallas jury. Church officials, they
insisted, bore more responsibility for the pain of victims than Rudolph
Kos himself.
We also loved the exceptional role
modelling Rev. Robert Williams provided for his profession. Since 1991
he has stood against the collusive system. His testimony at the trial
was seen as key. Three days later he stood before the same congregation
Rudolph Kos had been pastoring at the time of abuses and said: “You defy
evil by standing up to it and saying it is evil.”