Church asks parishioners to donate to sex abuse compensation

The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego, California, is asking parishioners to donate €18m to help pay for its €142m settlement with childhood sex abuse victims.

The diocesan headquarters and a nearby seminary may have to be sold if the campaign is unsuccessful, Bishop Robert Brom wrote in a letter that will be sent to parishioners with a note from individual pastors.

Earlier this month, the bishop asked the 280 priests in the diocese to contribute one month’s salary – about €1,030 – to the Embracing Our Mission campaign – an idea from current priests who saw it as a gesture towards the 144 men and women who claimed they were abused by clergy and church workers when they were children.