WASHINGTON — Sexual harassment is a prevalent problem in the United Methodist Church, according to a survey of church pastors, bishops and laity.
In the survey, 67.3 percent of respondents said they had experienced or observed harassment. Sixty percent of the alleged harassment was committed by persons of the laity, compared to 35 percent by clergy.
About 47 percent said they reported the harassment, according to United Methodist News Service.
Gail Murphy-Geiss of Colorado presented preliminary results of the study during the United Methodist Church’s Commission on the Status and Role of Women Sept. 15–17 annual meeting in Cambridge, Mass.
Of the 1,300 people who responded to the survey, 72 percent were clergy, 51.3 percent students, 50.6 percent church employees and 38.9 percent laity.
Although the United Methodist Church has policies on sexual harassment, some respondents said victims were not taken seriously when they reported the abuses.
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