the vast majority of domestic violence victims are women, and father charles dahm wants the church to be a place of refuge for them. judy valente has our story. >> reporter: father charles dahm has come to a parish on chicago's north side to deliver the kind of homily the parishioners have probably never heard before, one which will make some of them uncomfortable. >> how many of you have ever heard a sermon about domestic violence? raise your hand. see, no one. dough tess mick violence is often unnoticed, hidden from our eyes, but actually it is rampant in our society and in our communities. >> reporter: one in four women will be abused sometime in her lifetime. rita smith, director of the national coalition against domestic violence, says the problem of abuse also imposes a significant cost to society. >> lost time at work, decreased productivity at work, health care costs related to injuries as a result of abuse, response time and cost for law enforcement to go to calls when someone is being battered. >> reporter: but so often the problem lies hidden. >> i've been a priest for 48 y