Last week, I received an email forwarded to me by an alt-weekly editor in another city about an event (that seems like a weird term to use, but “protest” seems too strong) that was held at a local church on Sunday. Mari Herreras ended up going and wrote about it on page 10 this week, but before I forwarded the email on to her, I spent a day trying to figure out whether this was the kind of story we wanted to pursue.
You should really read Mari’s story, but here’s the basic summary of the situation. In 2000, Eric Holtan made a plea agreement to two counts of child sexual abuse, charges he faced for having sexual contact with two female students at East High School in Duluth where he served as choir director. Holtan, who is still on probation from those charges, is now the executive director of Tucson Chamber Artists, and as pointed out by the email I receieved, a music minister at Dove of Peace Lutheran Church on the northwest side.
My first reaction, honestly, was outrage. My family attends church now and then and the idea that a congregation would choose to hire someone with Holtan’s past seemed insane to me. If I found out that information, which is easily accessible with the most basic of Google searches, after going to a church for some amount of time, I’d be furious. Holtan’s indiscretions might be in his past, but that information should also be available to the parents of children he might come in contact with, even in the most banal contexts.
On the other hand, however, the core of Christian theology is the concept and practice of grace. There’s no justification for what Holtan did, but how long should his punishment last? People make bad decisions in their twenties all the time, most of which aren’t felonies, but those choices aren’t generally accompanied by a scarlet letter of sorts worn for life.
In the end, the event held outside the church was public in nature, as are the records and associated news stories about Holtan’s past crimes. People deserve to make decisions, including where they go to church, based on more information, not less. Even if it’s not always a story we might want to re-tell.
This article appears in Nov 14-20, 2013.
My how times change. Many, many years ago a teacher at the high school I attended began dating a senior. Just after graduation they married and have been happily married for nearly 35 years (if my math is right). He was 22 and she was 18.
Just for comparison my husband is 10 years my senior although we didn’t meet until I was in my 30’s and he in his 40’s.
Sometimes, our “outrage” pales when looked at with rational eyes.
Jesse:
Looking with rational eyes, as you suggest we do in your comment, involves paying attention to research and law rather than anecdotal stories.
Young people who experience abuse by a person in a position of authority most often have to struggle for years to recover. This is why laws are in place to protect minors (ages 0-17). I would suggest talking to people who have had the experience, or reading literature that addresses the issue before assuming that you can understand it based on the story from your high school.
Also, many people with age differentials choose to get married as adults. Adult is the key word.
The difference between a 22 year old dating an 18 year old, and a 29 year old teacher having sex with multiple 15 year old students couldn’t be farther apart.
Mr. Gibson, I can understand your “mixed emotions” certainly with regard to the concept that Christians should be forgiving and that punishment shouldn’t necessarily be forever.
But before someone can be forgiven, especially for something as horrible as the rape of multiple children, shouldn’t they take actions to take responsibility for their actions, beyond just serving time in prison? As the main article on this topic notes, Mr. Holtan apparently did not even inform Church leaders that he served jail time, instead whitewashing his own crimes as “inappropriate relationships” that resulted in probation. The reality of the situation is that he was a person of authority who took advantage of multiple young teens, who is back in another position of authority. I can assure you that he has left his victims with emotional scars that will take far more than 15 years to heal, and while he apparently wants people to move on, he doesn’t seem to be interested in taking responsibility. Without that, there certainly can not, and should not, be forgiveness.
I am glad to hear you had trouble deciding whether or not to run the story. My opinion of you went up ten fold.
How long will the punishment last for his victims? A lifetime. One would assume he’s having a lifetime of therapy to work out his “issues” that caused his behavior in the first place. If I was a member of that church, to get that job, it would be mandatory. None of that takes away from the fact that abuse changes who we are when it happens. We become different people than the people we were meant to be.