This article offers theological reflection on the sexual abuse crisis in the Latin American
church, focusing on the child victim. Beginning with a summary of the scandal as it has
hit the Latin American church, the author shows how the clerical sexual abuse crisis
engages with the particular sociopolitical contexts of children in Latin America. The
article then contextualizes a theology of childhood in the Gospel accounts of Jesus’s
care for the young and vulnerable children. Finally, the author offers some fundamental
theological reflections for an ecclesial response to the crisis, focusing on a theology
of the child.