MI - Controversial priest selected as a Michigan bishop; SNAP responds
For immediate release: Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2013
David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, [email protected])
Father John Doerfler of the Diocese of Green Bay is the new bishop of Marquette, Michigan. We are disappointed with this promotion.
Doerfler has been a high ranking official in that diocese for some time. It’s a diocese with a terrible track record on clergy sex abuse and cover up cases.
We believe that Fr. Doerfler is also associated with a controversial Catholic group called Courage:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/19/nyregion/concern-about-antigay-bias-at-a-high-school-talk.html
We hope that as Marquette’s new bishop he will immediately warn parents, parishioners and the public about a former Marquette priest, Fr. Benedict Van der Putten, who was defrocked due to credible child sex abuse allegations and who now lives in Hawaii.
It’s irresponsible for Catholic officials to recruit, educate, ordain, hire, train and transfer priests and merely oust them when they molest kids. Bishops should also warn others about them, especially when they move far away as Van der Putten has done. We strongly suspect that families who live near him now have no idea that he’s a predator.
Bishop Doerfler should also post on the Marquette diocesan website the names, photos and whereabouts of every proven, admitted and credibly accused Catholic child molesting cleric who has ever worked or lived in the diocese. Roughly 30 US bishops have done this. It’s the quickest way to protect kids.
We also hope that Bishop Doerfler uses his bully pulpit and diocesan resources to aggressively seek out individuals who were hurt by the nine credibly accused predator priests in the diocese.
Contact - David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747, [email protected]), Peter Isely- SNAP Midwest Director (414-429-7259, [email protected]), John Pilmaier- SNAP Wisconsin Director (414-336-8575, [email protected])
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director