The thing about abusing a child is that their memories run deep. You may dimly recall and event from your childhood, for a victim of child sexual abuse, it can be a vivid every day memory. I corresponded with an adult victim recently. She told me of how the smile of a stranger trigger her memories of abuse from 30 years ago when she was 12. It’s frightening. She relives the event with each smile. I can’t remember being 12 or anything that happened at that time without help from my family. Yet she relives it every day.
Pastor Francisco Antonio Hernandez faced the long memory of his alleged abuse victims recently when a when a woman came forward with a story of abuse from back in the early 90s. Three other women echoed her story.
Austin police say in June four women in their 20s and 30s came into APD headquarters to report they had been victims of sexual abuse as children.
One woman, now 25, claims her former pastor, Francisco Antonio Hernandez, molested her in 1991 in his South Austin home.
The other three women are sisters. They say they too were abused in his home in 1989. KVUE spoke to the oldest sister who is now 31. She asked that we not reveal her identity.
Source: Pastor arrested in child sex assault case by Noelle Newton
Hernandez allegedly apologized to the victims and demanded forgiveness. I don’t understand this behavior. There is no apology for something like this. One must be held to justice. One must pay in time and then ask… or beg, for forgiveness.
I’d like to point out one sad fact in this case. The parents trusted the pastor with their children. The parents gave their children to the pastor… Why do sane people do this? A pastor is just a man (or woman). He is not special. He is not anointed by god. He is performing a job just like a teacher or a janitor. His job does make he a pillar of virtue or an upstanding moral citizen. He’s just a man with all the baggage that implies. Never leave your children with a pastor.
