A man who was sexually abused as a child by a former Anglican priest told his perpetrator in court that he still could not talk to his parents about the abuse and felt ongoing shame.
Convicted paedophile priest Louis Victor Daniels, 75, has pleaded guilty to two counts of persistent sexual abuse of a young person.
The Supreme Court in Hobart was told Daniels was an Anglican priest and Church of England Boys' Society leader when he abused two boys over nine years between 1978 and 1987.
One of his victims read a statement via video link detailing how the assault had impacted most aspects of his life.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said Daniels had been trusted by his parents.
"Daniels manipulated my mother and father to gain access to me, and they thought they could trust him because of his position within the Anglican church," he told the court.
"It was hard to believe a man held in such high esteem could be a predator on so many children, and even to this day, I can't talk to my parents about the abuse.
"There is a world of memories and psychological trauma I keep hidden, and I don't share them with anyone."
He told the court he had struggled with his mental health as a result of the abuse and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following a psychological breakdown.
He takes anti-depressants as well as medication for the flashbacks.
The court heard the offending only stopped when a senior leader from the Anglican church intervened.
Crown prosecutor Claire Flockhart read out a statement on behalf of the second man who was sexually abused by Daniels as a teenager in Tasmania.
He met Daniels when he attended weekly church meetings and annual Church of England Boys Society camps.
The man described how he sometimes used alcohol to "numb out his life" and would self-harm by burning himself with cigarettes and cutting himself.
The court heard he was diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety and depression but that he finally understood what his triggers were.
"Every time I think I'm in control and have buried what happened away in my mind, something will bring the memories back," he said.
"It's something that will never go away, like a scab that will never heal."
The court heard that Daniels forced the boy to perform oral sex on him on several occasions, touched him inappropriately, and raped him when the boy was sleeping at his home.
Daniels told him it was a secret and "he wouldn't be believed because he was a priest".
Ms Flockhart told the court that the offending only stopped when he stopped going to church and to the annual camps.
"Daniels took advantage of their vulnerability for his own sexual gratification," she said.
Since resigning from the Anglican Diocese of Tasmania in the 1990s, Daniels has been convicted of more than a dozen child sexual abuse offences.
He has previously served two jail terms for sexual offending.
Daniels was arrested in the ACT, where he had been living last May and extradited to Tasmania.
At the time, Detective Inspector Michael Smith said the investigation into Daniels had been long and complex after a complaint was lodged following the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
Daniels appeared before the commission in 2016.
He will be sentenced in the Supreme Court next month.
