Priest Breaks Silence on Abuse By Bishop
March 22 -- Roman Catholic priest Christopher Dixon says he kept his secret about Bishop Anthony O'Connell for more than 15 years. Then he was paid to keep quiet about it for good.
"Silence seemed to be the only option at the time," says Dixon, who ended up leaving the priesthood. "The church is so big and so powerful."
Dixon, 40, broke his silence two weeks ago, going public with his allegation that O'Connell touched him inappropriately in bed when he was a teenager attending the Missouri seminary where O'Connell was rector. The next day, O'Connell stepped down as bishop of the Diocese of Palm Beach, Fla., admitting Dixon's allegation was true, but denying the incident was sexual in nature.
"I trusted this man completely," says Dixon. "He was my idol, my mentor, my shepherd, if you will … and I was betrayed."
As claims of pedophilia rock the foundations of the Catholic Church, Dixon is alleging that he was repeatedly sexually abused by priests. He says he is breaking his silence because he couldn't live with himself or his faith any more. This week, two other former seminarians stepped forward with sexual misconduct allegations against O'Connell, filing lawsuits. One of the cases accuses O'Connell and the three dioceses where he worked of "racketeering" under the federal RICO law, which is usually used against organized crime.
"I was seduced — seduced in one of the most insidious ways I can think of," Dixon told ABCNEWS' chief investigative correspondent, Brian Ross.
‘Would You Like to Kiss Jesus?’
Growing up as one of eight children in a Catholic family in Hannibal, Mo., Dixon was raised to respect, honor and trust the priests who were so much a part of his life.
"In my mind, as a little kid, they were pretty close to God, pretty close to Jesus, and I never knew there was a problem with the priests," he says.
The first time he became aware of a problem, he says, was when he was 11, during a face-to-face confession with his pastor, John Fischer.
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