SNAP blasts symposium in Rome as “window dressing”
How many meetings will it take for Rome to learn that child sex abuse is a crime, predators must be made public and jailed, and church officials who cover up for molesters must be held accountable?
But even after years of promises, meetings, and empty apologies, the Vatican cannot do the simplest, cheapest, and most child-friendly action possible: make public decades of secret files on clergy sex offenders and enablers.
This week in Rome, Catholic bishops and religious superiors from around the world are meeting for the Vatican-sponsored “Towards Healing and Renewal” conference. The four day symposium is being billed as a “global initiative on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults”.
Conference leaders say that the purpose of this event is to create guidelines on how to handle reports of childhood sexual abuse. Who will be leading the discussion? The very same “experts” and church officials who bear responsibility for the continued global cover-up of clergy child sex crimes, including Cardinal William Levada, who covered up criminal reports of child rape and sexual assault when he was archbishop of San Francisco, California and Portland, Oregon.
True change and child protection comes through accountability from secular authorities. Until we have that, we must see Rome’s meeting for exactly what it is: cheap window dressing.
If the Vatican was serious about protecting and safeguarding children Pope Benedict XVI would order Cardinal Levada and other church officials to turn over the thousands of pages of evidence of sex crimes they have in their possession to the International Criminal Court for investigation and prosecution.
Read the story here: http://thr.unigre.it/vescovi2012/en-gb/presspublic/press.aspx
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
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