Diocese of Belleville to Get a New Bishop, SNAP Responds
The Catholic Diocese of Belleville is getting a new bishop following the retirement of their current prelate. We hope that Belleville’s leader elect will usher in a new era of transparency and openness, but we are skeptical that this will actually happen.
Outgoing Bishop Edward Braxton has resigned from his position after turning 75, the normal retirement age for Catholic bishops. Now, the Diocese of Belleville is set to welcome Michael McGovern, a priest from Chicago, as the new prelate. Fr. McGovern has spent most of his career as a parish priest in Chicago, but also worked for at least four years in the office of the Chancellor, where he worked with international priests.
The primary reason we are concerned about Fr. McGovern’s appointment is a 2003 letter he wrote to then-Cardinal Francis George expressing support for Fr. Robert Kealy (page 141 of link), a priest in Chicago who had been accused of abusing at least one boy in the 1970s. Fr. Kealy was permanently removed from ministry in 2005 after it was determined the allegations were “credible.”
We do not believe that a pastor who defended an abusive priest should be promoted to the position of bishop. But now that Fr. McGovern has been tapped, we hope that he will speak about this mistake publicly, demonstrate to the public that he has learned more about clergy abuse, and promise to never again automatically take the side of an accused cleric over a victim in his new role.
When he becomes bishop, Fr. McGovern can immediately prove his dedication to transparency and prevention by updating Belleville’s list of accused priests, particularly by including with each entry when the diocese learned about the allegations, and what actions were taken in response. However, we fear that Fr. McGovern will not usher in a new era of openness, but will continue to follow the same old patterns of secrecy.
Contact: Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director ([email protected])
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is www.SNAPnetwork.org)
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