For immediate release: Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com) 

Gregory's "apology" about his extravagant spending rings hollow.

The test of whether an apology is sincere is simple: Are the remorseful words followed by different deeds? In this case, at best, it's too early to tell, because Gregory refuses to reverse himself. 

If you apologize for something, you express regret for having done something and you stop doing it. But Gregory wants to have his cake and eat it too. He wants to say "I'm sorry" without having to say "I'll change."

Most of who Gregory will allegedly "consult" will be clerics who have pledged to obey him. So how meaningful and authentic will their feedback be? 

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 15,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

Contact - David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, SNAPclohessy@aol.com), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, SNAPdorris@gmail.com)