Lesbian Worship Leader Vicky Beeching Reveals She was Sexually Assaulted by a Priest

Ahead of the publication of her memoir, worship leader and songwriter Vicky Beeching has revealed that she was sexually assaulted by a male priest of the Church of England when she was only 18 years-old. Coming from a Christian family where her mother was also a worship leader, Beeching in her new book Undivided shares about some of her struggles and her dark chapters of her life. 

In an interview with Indy100 on Tuesday, she discloses:  "In the book, I write about an incident where a male priest sexually assaulted me, and I decided it was important to speak out about that now. Often, male leadership is seen as unquestionable in churches, so women can feel unable to speak up for fear of not being believed. I kept silent about my experience, which happened at the age of 18, for that very reason."

Beeching also said that she continues having thoughts about becoming a priest, but is unable to do so because the CofE defines marriage solely as a union between one man and one woman.

"The Church of England makes every priest promise to live by their official teachings on sexuality - agreeing that same-sex marriages are sinful, and not suitable for anyone in the priesthood. I cannot agree with that, so until that teaching changes, I am blocked from priesthood."

In the book, Beeching also recounts her struggles to cure her struuggles with same-sex attraction. She recalls how as an adolescence, she would spend time wrestling with her sexuality. In the last few years she's written about the damages caused by conversion therapy, psychological treatment based on the belief that sexuality can be 'cured' through prayer, a topic she covers in more depth throughout the book. 

"It's dangerous and harmful to suggest anyone can be turned from gay to straight, but some churches still advertise this and practice it behind closed doors. I believe it has to end before more lives are damaged."

"Those experiences made me divorce myself from my own feelings, attractions, and physical body, so I ended up a very dissociated adult. It's taken a lot of counselling to heal that damage, and I'm still dealing with some of the fallout today." She states, unequivocally, that conversion therapy should be banned.

Beeching also talks about her decision to come out as a lesbian despite the opposition she knew she would face. "The decision wasn't mine to make," she explains to indy100. "Once I came out, my music career was over because the mega-churches, religious festivals and Christian conferences I used to be part of slammed the door on me, which was heartbreaking. The whole thing just ended right in front of my eyes."

 

 

 

 

 

 

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