A senior Anglican Church leader is set to issue a formal apology to Beth Heinrich, a survivor of historical sexual abuse, in what marks the second public apology she has received in the past three months. Bishop of Bathurst Mark Calder will deliver the apology during a Sunday service at St John’s Church in Forbes, New South Wales, adjacent to the former Anglican hostel where Heinrich was groomed and exploited as a teenager by a predatory priest.

The upcoming apology follows a similar expression of regret issued in March by Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane Jeremy Greaves. Archbishop Greaves acknowledged that his predecessor, the late Peter Hollingworth, who served as governor-general, had failed Heinrich by suggesting she had instigated the sexual relationship with her abuser—comments widely criticised for dismissing her experience and minimizing the abuse she endured.

Heinrich, now 86, emphasized the significance of Bishop Calder’s forthcoming apology, noting it sends an important message to other survivors that persistence in seeking justice and accountability can eventually yield results. “It’s not for myself. I’m doing it — to demonstrate that if people have been abused out there they should not give up, they need to keep going to be heard and to get something done,” she said. “I think my experience shows that you will get somewhere if you keep at it.”

Bishop Calder expressed regret over the harm inflicted upon Heinrich by the church, stating, “I’m very sad that Beth was harmed by the church and the apology expresses that.” He described the abuse she suffered as “appalling” and “shameful,” highlighting that such actions should never have occurred.

Heinrich’s abuse began in the mid-1950s when she was 14 and sent to board at an Anglican hostel in Forbes, as her family’s farm was too distant for daily travel to high school. Donald Shearman, then a married priest and the boarding master, abused Heinrich over an extended period. He promised to leave his wife and marry her but instead orchestrated her expulsion by falsely accusing her of promiscuity. This led to estrangement from her family and ended her aspirations to become a teacher.

The abuse continued into her adulthood, with Shearman maintaining control over Heinrich, including a brief period of cohabitation in 1984 after she fled a troubled marriage. She eventually reported the abuse to the church, but it took nearly two decades for official action. In 2002, after Heinrich publicized her story, Hollingworth infamously dismissed the allegations, suggesting that Heinrich had been the instigator despite her being underage. These remarks intensified criticism of the church’s handling of the case.

In 2004, Shearman was found guilty of misconduct by a church tribunal and became the first Anglican bishop in Australia to be defrocked. By then, Hollingworth had resigned from his vice-regal role amid mounting controversy. He issued multiple apologies to Heinrich before his death in May 2023 at age 91. Shearman died in 2019.

Heinrich has also received written apologies from the dioceses of Brisbane and Bathurst, which administer the region including Forbes, but she has underscored the importance of direct apologies from church leaders. She plans to attend the Sunday service where Bishop Calder will address the congregation, calling the gesture “a physical demonstration that they did something wrong and they’re sorry for it.”

Archbishop Greaves, in his March apology, admitted that the church had failed Heinrich at multiple levels of leadership. “Most grievously, those in positions of senior leadership in the Brisbane diocese, including archbishop Peter Hollingworth, failed Beth,” he said. “Rather than expressing compassion, justice and accountability—the victim-survivor was blamed, while the person responsible was defended or excused.”