This is the third and final lecture in the autumn 2025 series.

Lecture 3: Into the Heart of Darkness; inside the minds of child sexual abusers and the community that protected them.

4 December 2025, 7 – 8.30pm

This lecture will be recorded.

Lecturer: Anne Manne

Anne Manne’s Crimes of the Cross; the Anglican Paedophile Network of Newcastle, Its Protectors and the Man who Fought for Justice, is the trauma informed and inspiring story of Steve Smith, a courageous survivor who was abused from the age of 10 to 14 by an Anglican priest. (Anglican is the Australian name for the Church of England). For 50 years, Smith fought against the church for recognition of the crimes committed, justice for himself and other survivors. Crimes of the Cross exposes a sinister network of abusers, where perpetrators recruited others, creating a portal into a sexually transgressive culture, while laity and parishioners looked the other way.
Anne Manne’s lecture will focus on why it happened, the processes of denialism that operated to mask the truth – not only literal denial but also interpretive denial – where the meaning of the abuse was minimised, normalised and rendered harmless by the language, concepts and blokey humour they used. What self-exonerating narrative were they telling themselves? What was the role of envy of the child in their cruelty? In identifying clerical narcissism in the abusers, I note that the classical myth of Narcissus, falling in love with himself, also depicts the important but overlooked character of Echo, the nymph whose devotion reduces her to a wraith, who echoes Narcissus’s every word. What was the role of parish “echoists” in the Newcastle tragedy, acolytes of powerful, charismatic males who refused to countenance their haloed priest as a perpetrator. How was contempt and rage mobilised against the brave survivors and whistle-blowers, who received ostracism, bullying and even death threats? Finally, I will talk about betrayal trauma, and the sources of Steve Smith’s indomitable courage in the face of all this evil, shining a light in the dark shadows of the church.

This lecture will take place on:

*To enable access to the widest possible audience these lectures are planned to be delivered live, but remotely, as webinars. Where we are able, a recording will be made available to all booked delegates although we encourage live attendance wherever possible. Please see the details above to see if this lecture will be recorded and available after the live event.

These lectures will be delivered remotely using Zoom. You will need a device with a suitably fast internet connection. Although mobile devices and tablets can be used, we recommend the use of laptop or desktop PC for the best experience. Some devices provided by employers may have restrictions in place. Please use this test link (https://zoom.us/test) to check your set up before booking.

You will be sent the necessary login link about a week before the course start date. Should you have any concerns about the accessibility of remote delivery please contact us at CPDEvents@tavi-port.ac.uk to discuss how we can best help you.