Ghana--Victims want Vatican to discipline Ghana bishop
For immediate release: Friday, July 1, 2016
Statement by Joelle Casteix of Orange County, SNAP volunteer western regional director, 949 322 7434, [email protected]
Vatican officials should discipline a retired bishop in Ghana.
Bishop Peter Akwasi Sarpong says crimes by pedophile priests are
-- not the worse form of sin,
-- experience “temptation” and are basically “having sex,”
-- attract an inappropriate amount of public attention, and
-- commit sins of weakness rather than malice, so their wrongdoing is less severe.
He also said “Politicians killing people to come to power, can you compare the sin of a priest who has seen a beautiful girl and has sex with her to that?”
These remarks hurt victims. They perpetuate widely-dispelled myths about abuse. They minimize the horror and damage of clergy sex crimes and cover ups.
And they should be denounced, at the highest levels, by the church hierarchy and by Sarpong’s colleagues. Otherwise clerics will continue to accept them and use them to justify committing and concealing heinous acts of violence against the most vulnerable, and those who see, suspect or suffer child sex crimes will continue to be dismissed, ignored and disbelieved, becoming even more helpless and hopeless.
Time and time and time again, across the globe, bishops make hurtful comments and take hurtful actions about his continuing crisis with impunity. Church defenders dismiss them as “isolated incidents,” much like they dismiss the actual crimes and cover ups. So the wrongdoing continues, the predators stay hidden, the victims remain depressed and the children ultimately get assaulted when these crimes could have been prevented.
No matter what lawmakers or church officials do or don’t do, we urge every single person with information or suspicions about child sex crimes and cover ups in Catholic churches or institutions – especially in the developing world – to protect kids by calling police, get help by calling therapists, expose wrongdoers by calling law enforcement, get justice by calling attorneys, and be comforted by calling support groups like ours. This is how kids will be safer, adults will recover, criminals will be prosecuted, cover ups will be deterred and the truth will surface.
(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])
Sexual acts involving Catholic priests not worst of sins - Archbishop
Friday, 1 July 2016, Ghana Web
Archbishop Emeritus of the Kumasi Arch Diocese Most Reverend Peter Akwasi Sarpong has taken a swipe at persons accusing the clergy especially priests of the Catholic Church of engaging in sexual intercourse indicating that it is not the worse form of sin.
In accordance with the doctrines of the church, ordained priests of the universal church are not supposed to . . .
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 1 comment