I debated for many months whether or not to share my story. It is not as bad as many of the early stories that I read that broke my heart. I was asked inappropriate questions by my bishops.
At the age of 17, I experienced a date rape, although that term wasn’t coined yet to my knowledge. Because of the teachings I had learned to that point about how my modesty or lack of was responsible for how the boys around me behaved, I felt that the rape was my fault. When I talked to my bishop about it, he demanded a “blow-by-blow” accounting of every minute of the ordeal. It was humiliating to have to recount every second of the rape and I felt as if I were being assaulted again.
It was visibly clear that he had become aroused by my recounting of the rape. My bishop had no training on how to counsel me and he reinforced that I was responsible for they rape. He did not report it to the police or provide any access to professional counseling services. My self esteem plummeted and I suffered through many bouts of suicidal thoughts over the next 10 years. No one should go through an interview like that ever again.