Capuchins Fail Survivors, Again
Fr. John Celichowski of the Capuchins religious order said Tuesday "through much of our history as a province, we have failed victims and survivors.”
He's wrong.
The Capuchins didn't "fail." Failure implies a good faith effort that somehow went awry. That's not what Catholic officials, dozens of them in this order and thousands of them across the world, have done. For the most part, they deliberately shunned victims, stonewalled prosecutors, deceived parishioners, moved predators and enforced secrecy and endangered kids. These are smart men with smart lawyers who made carefully-crafted and self-serving decisions.
These were not mistakes or failures or inadequacies. It's a disservice to children, victims, parishioners and the public to add insult to injury by deceiving people now about these intentional, hurtful and sometimes illegal actions.
In fact, the Capuchins succeeded. For decades - until victims gave up and wrongdoers died and statutes of limitations expired - they succeeded in keeping a tight lid on their dirty secrets.
And as the report notes, they escaped any consequences for violating the law by refusing to call police about known and suspected child sex crimes.
So despite breaking the law, they've gotten off scot free.
The question is now: what will they do to make amends?
Here's an easy start: They should put on their website the name of the church defense lawyer who, as the AP says, "Threatened to reveal the sexual orientation of a victim if he testified in a criminal trial." And they should post an apology for having hired him and a pledge to never do so again.
Here's another easy start: They should start actively lobbying for better child safety laws. Having successfully exploited the predator-friendly statutes of limitations, they should now help abolish predator-friendly statues of limitations.
Contact: Barb Dorris, Outreach Director, 314-862-7688 [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