{"id":2485,"date":"2016-06-28T13:21:49","date_gmt":"2016-06-28T07:51:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485"},"modified":"2016-06-28T13:21:49","modified_gmt":"2016-06-28T07:51:49","slug":"spotlight-priests-asaram-child-abuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?p=2485","title":{"rendered":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I<\/span>ndia\u2019s<\/p>misogyny<\/span><\/a> pandemic is perhaps as old as <\/span>Harappa<\/span><\/a> itself, but even by our hardened standards, the <\/span>Kathua<\/span><\/a> and Unnao rape cases are proof that our nation is an <\/span>area<\/span> of bleak, sad darkness. The former case involves the abduction, gang-rape and murder of an eight-year-old nomadic girl in <\/span>Jammu<\/span><\/a>; the latter the rape of a 17-year-old at the hands of <\/span>Kuldeep Singh Sengar<\/span><\/a>, a BJP MLA, followed by the death of her father in judicial custody, and her subsequent attempt to immolate herself to secure justice. Any progress since Harappa seems cosmetic in the wake of the right-wing renaissance that has befallen us. <\/span>\n\nBut it wasn\u2019t just the crimes that evoked national outrage. In Kathua, BJP ministers <\/a>from the J&K government attended \u201cprotests\u201d on behalf of the accused and lawyers from its bar association obstructed the crime branch from filing a charge sheet. In Unnao, Kuldeep Singh Sengar\u2019s smug grin for the shutterbugs outside the Uttar Pradesh CM\u2019s office truly held up a mirror to the times we live in.\n\nThat sexual assault<\/a> is an abomination is a given. But when sex crimes<\/a> are committed by the purveyors of a religious denomination (or cult)<\/a>, they are doubly horrific because the perpetrators are often insulated by an armour of divinity and an army of the faithful. When Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh<\/a>, godman and Dera Sacha Sauda<\/a> (DSS) head honcho, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for two rape cases by a special CBI court last year, his followers in Haryana killed 31 people and injured 250 in a \u201cspontaneous\u201d expression of their indignation. Following the verdict, 48 other victims came forward to allege sexual abuse by the \u201cguru\u201d. I wonder if Asaram\u2019s<\/a> sentencing will also embolden some of his other victims.\n\nThen again, let\u2019s not merely pick on the bearded babas<\/a> in our backyard. The Academy Award<\/a>-winning Spotlight<\/i>, for instance, offers us a gut-wrenching perspective on how unchecked power in religious dominion and chronic sexual abuse<\/a> are perhaps twins locked in a macabre waltz.\n\nWhat started out as an expos\u00e9 by The Boston Globe<\/i>\u2019s Spotlight investigation team in 2001, involving 13 priests accused of sexually assaulting children, eventually culminated in as many as 1,100 cases in the Boston area alone. However, more than the horror of children being subjected to repeated abuse at the hands of the clergy, it was the systemic cover-up of the crimes<\/a> that shook the foundations of the Roman Catholic church \u2014 the scandal eventually spread to Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.\n

While Spotlight focused on its intrepid journalists, it could be accused of using its victims as mere props.<\/blockquote>\nThe modus operandi was simple: If a priest was accused of molesting a child, he would not be sacked or arrested. He\u2019d simply be \u201ctransferred\u201d to another parish, thus creating a vicious cycle of chronic child abuse<\/a> that lasted over decades. Most of the victims came from working-class homes, which made them prone to intimidation and silent suffering. Most victims suffered from lifelong repercussions, from suicidal tendencies to substance abuse.\n\nAside from the Gothic heft of the church, what also protected these criminals was our unflinching faith in faith<\/a> itself. If such heinous crimes were being committed within the walls of a church, the fulcrum of a society, what is left of society\u2019s \u201csafe zone\u201d? It is our collective oblivion of the ineffable nastiness of our mighty stooping this low that glints back at us like a malevolent gem in Tom McCarthy\u2019s riveting film. Many of us felt the same way when the Kathua case, where the victim was confined in a temple during her prolonged assault, came to light.\n\nOn a lighter note, Spotlight <\/i>also stands out for its depiction of the old-school newsroom<\/a>, its spot-on art direction. This is 2001 in all its monochrome glory and we even have a sneak peek of the 9\/11 attacks unfurling on television at The Boston Globe<\/i> office. We are, after all, three years away from the noughties becoming officially retro (\u201990s nostalgia is all the rage now, as the \u201980s were in the last decade). Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, and Rachel McAdams are brilliantly cast as die-hard journos here \u2014 even if the spires of Boston, the Brahminical epicentre of New England\/Old America, will never be the same again.\n\nWhile Spotlight <\/i>focused on its intrepid journalists, it could be accused of using its victims as mere props. The Keepers<\/i>, a 2017 seven-part Netflix <\/a>documentary, rectifies this lapse to create a hypnotic, disturbing saga.\n\nFor one, The Keepers<\/i>, again a story of sexual abuse by priests and its subsequent cover-up by the establishment, features real-life victims, something that touches a very raw nerve. This immersive investigation into the murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik in 1969 and a murky priest in the Baltimore region spans half a century. But what makes The Keepers<\/i> truly trenchant is how it restores the power of narrative back to its victims: Two remarkable women, with a deep emotional connect to the case, pick up the pieces of what happened to a gaggle of hapless young girls at the formerly all-girls Archbishop Keough High School in Baltimore, Maryland.\n\nThe Keepers<\/i> makes for difficult, but essential, viewing, especially in the wake of a slew of vicious crimes against women<\/a> (and the shameful attempts to cover them up) that we have witnessed on home turf. Spotlight<\/i> and The Keepers<\/i> remind us that it is necessary to document the story of the oppressed, no matter how powerful the oppressor.\n\nThat these works of art have been created, despite the ubiquitous power of the church in America, should be an inspiration to our filmmakers. Here\u2019s hoping #Kathua and #Unnao will not merely remain hashtags that fade into Twitter tokenisms, as the inevitable churn of the news cycle brings newer, fresher crimes into circulation. It is well worth the fight for our filmmakers to take these lies and make them true at a cinema hall near you.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":238,"featured_media":2486,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[999,5073,5074,4887,546,1341,5075,1615,1617,5076,5077],"class_list":["post-2485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pop-culture","tag-child-abuse","tag-church","tag-crimes","tag-faith","tag-films","tag-netflix","tag-priests","tag-rape","tag-sexual-abuse","tag-the-keepers","tag-victims"],"yoast_head":"\nF\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Arr\u00e9\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-06-28T07:51:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1520\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"850\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Vishwas Kulkarni\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Vishwas Kulkarni\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Vishwas Kulkarni\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65c9017600df2d68012080ae92a8ca1a\"},\"headline\":\"F\\\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-06-28T07:51:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485\"},\"wordCount\":1000,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1524912486.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Child Abuse\",\"church\",\"crimes\",\"faith\",\"films\",\"Netflix\",\"priests\",\"Rape\",\"Sexual Abuse\",\"the keepers\",\"victims\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Pop Culture\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485\",\"name\":\"F\\\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1524912486.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-06-28T07:51:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65c9017600df2d68012080ae92a8ca1a\"},\"description\":\"Welcome to F\\\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1524912486.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1524912486.jpg\",\"width\":1520,\"height\":850},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=2485#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"F\\\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/\",\"name\":\"Arr\u00e9\",\"description\":\"In every person lies a creator and in every creator, an enterprise.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65c9017600df2d68012080ae92a8ca1a\",\"name\":\"Vishwas Kulkarni\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/2f9252532407c43cf1db100665aca8900a110d3f5b10513a1bd9fcc92d5a0c07?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/2f9252532407c43cf1db100665aca8900a110d3f5b10513a1bd9fcc92d5a0c07?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/2f9252532407c43cf1db100665aca8900a110d3f5b10513a1bd9fcc92d5a0c07?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Vishwas Kulkarni\"},\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/?author=238\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith","description":"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith","og_description":"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.","og_url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485","og_site_name":"Arr\u00e9","article_published_time":"2016-06-28T07:51:49+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1520,"height":850,"url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Vishwas Kulkarni","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith","twitter_description":"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Vishwas Kulkarni","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485"},"author":{"name":"Vishwas Kulkarni","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#\/schema\/person\/65c9017600df2d68012080ae92a8ca1a"},"headline":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith","datePublished":"2016-06-28T07:51:49+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485"},"wordCount":1000,"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg","keywords":["Child Abuse","church","crimes","faith","films","Netflix","priests","Rape","Sexual Abuse","the keepers","victims"],"articleSection":["Pop Culture"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485","url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485","name":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg","datePublished":"2016-06-28T07:51:49+00:00","author":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#\/schema\/person\/65c9017600df2d68012080ae92a8ca1a"},"description":"Welcome to F\/riction, a column on films and books that mirror the big nasty of the week. This week, the conversation around sexual assault and the sentencing of Asaram, the godman who raped a teenager in 2013, takes us back to Spotlight, which lifted the veil on systemic child abuse in the Boston area by Roman Catholic priests.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg","width":1520,"height":850},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2485#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"F\/riction: Asaram, Spotlight, and the Unchecked Power of Faith"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#website","url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/","name":"Arr\u00e9","description":"In every person lies a creator and in every creator, an enterprise.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#\/schema\/person\/65c9017600df2d68012080ae92a8ca1a","name":"Vishwas Kulkarni","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/2f9252532407c43cf1db100665aca8900a110d3f5b10513a1bd9fcc92d5a0c07?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/2f9252532407c43cf1db100665aca8900a110d3f5b10513a1bd9fcc92d5a0c07?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/2f9252532407c43cf1db100665aca8900a110d3f5b10513a1bd9fcc92d5a0c07?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Vishwas Kulkarni"},"url":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?author=238"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1524912486.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/238"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2485\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}