Vatican--New bishops are NOT told to call police about abuse, Crux reports
For immediate release: Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016
Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 503 0003, [email protected])
New Catholic bishops are NOT told to call law enforcement when abuse reports are made, according to a veteran Vatican reporter.
John Allen of Crux (formerly with the National Catholic Reporter) writes that the Vatican official who’s in charge of training new bishops
--“argued that bishops have no duty to report allegations to the police,” and
--“devoted just a few paragraphs” in a “long presentation” to “abuse prevention, using abstract language without concrete examples.”
Just troubling were the comments Monsignor Stephen Rossetti, who’s on the board of the Rome-based Gregorian University’s Centre for Child Protection. When asked “What should new bishops be told about sexual abuse?” Rossetti also made no mention of the need for church officials to call secular authorities.
In one sense, this isn’t surprising. As BishopAccountability.org has pointed out, “zero tolerance,” while often uttered by Catholic officials, isn’t even the official policy of the global church.
But it’s infuriating – and dangerous – that so many believe the myth that bishops are changing how they deal with abuse and that so little attention is paid when evidence to the contrary - like this disclosure by Allen – emerges.
(NOTE – the Vatican new bishops training was led by Paris-based Msgr. Tony Anatrella of the Pontifical Council for the Family and the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers, who Allen acknowledges is “a psychotherapist controversial for his views on homosexuality and “gender theory.”)
SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 20,000 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, [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747,[email protected])
What new Catholic bishops are, and aren’t, being told on sex abuse
by John L. Allen Jr., Associate editor February 7, 2016
Given what a cancer the clerical sexual abuse scandals have been for the Catholic Church, one would imagine the Vatican would want new bishops to get a state-of-the-art presentation on best practices in terms of preventing such meltdowns in the future.
The Vatican has been running just such a training course since 2001 for newly appointed bishops around the world, and . . .
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
Showing 2 comments
One would hope that at least one of their professions, that of a professional psychologist or that of an ordained priest of the Roman Catholic Church, would compel either Anatrella or Rossetti, in the minimum, to RECOMMEND that bishops and cardinals notify the public officials after receiving allegations of child sexual abuse by clergy.
With such a position made public by the Vatican, it is not surprising that more Catholic parents will think and study the issue whether or not it is wise, safe and in their child’s best interests to enroll them in a Catholic elementary school or Catholic high school here in the USA.
Michael Skiendzielewski
Captain (retired)
Philadelphia Police Dept.