News Story of the Day

Liberty University threatened to punish students who reported being raped with conduct violations: report

THE HILL -

BY MYCHAEL SCHNELL - 

Liberty University threatened to punish students who came forward with reports of being raped for violating the school’s code of conduct, according to a new report published Monday by ProPublica.

ProPublica spoke to more than 50 former students and staffers at Liberty University and reviewed records from more than a dozen cases, which accused the school of discouraging and dismissing students who came forward with allegations of rape, reporting that in some cases they said they were threatened with punishment for breaking the school’s moral code, known as the Liberty Way.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE: https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/578278-liberty-university-threatened-to-punish-students-who-reported


Pope releases shocking letter from Church sex abuse victim

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors publishes a "letter to seminarians" written by a woman who, as a little girl, was sexually abused by a priest

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors released a letter from a victim abused sexually by a priest, on Monday, October 18. 
By Loup Besmond de Senneville | Vatican City
At the insistence of Pope Francis, the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors has published a "letter to seminarians" written by a woman who was sexually abused by a priest when she was a little girl."I am also here on behalf of the other victims... children who were deeply hurt, whose childhood, purity and respect were stolen... who were betrayed and had their unlimited trust taken advantage of… They were killed once (twice, many times)... their souls were torn into little bloody pieces," says the unidentified author in a letter in Italian that she sent to the pope. Francis then instructed the pontifical commission to publish the text on its website."For years I was abused by a priest," writes the woman. "I try to survive, to feel joy, but in fact, it is an incredibly difficult struggle," she continues. My body "remembers every touch""I suffer from dissociative identity disorder, severe complex post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, fear of others," she writes, emphasizing that her body still "remembers every touch"."I don't sleep and if I can fall asleep, I still have nightmares," the abuse survivor says."I am afraid of priests, of being around them," she adds, saying she can no longer go to Mass. The woman then makes a poignant appeal to seminarians and priests. "Please do not allow these wounds to be even deeper and new ones to occur! ... God has called you to be his instrument among humanity. You have a GREAT RESPONSIBILITY! A responsibility that is not a burden, but a GIFT!" she writes. She urges the men not to "sweep things under the rug", because "otherwise, the rug itself will fall apart"."Realize that when we hide these facts when we remain silent about them, we hide the dirt and thus become a COMPLICIT," the abuse survivor warns the clerics and seminarians. She ends her letter with this appeal: "PLEASE BE A GOOD PRIEST!" 

‘The Problem Remains’

Commonweal Magazine

Sex abuse & the French Catholic Church

William Casey Post-Conviction Relief Denied By Panel

The Greenville Sun

October 14, 2021

 

William Casey’s bid for post-conviction relief in connection with the former Catholic priest’s 2011 conviction on charges of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of aggravated rape was denied by the Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee at Knoxville.

In a filing Wednesday, the appeals court affirmed the judgment of a post-conviction court denying Casey’s challenges to the convictions for actions committed in 1979 and 1980.

Casey’s bid for a new trial was denied in 2020 by Sullivan County Criminal Court Judge James M. Goodwin. Casey, a Greene County resident, was convicted in 2011 by a Sullivan County Criminal Court jury of the criminal sexual conduct and aggravated rape counts.


Victim of priest child sexual abuse case against David Huneck comes forward

In a statement released Monday, Mariella Warney identified herself as 'victim one' in a sexual assault of a minor case against Father David Huneck.

Posted: Oct 11, 2021 10:39 PM
Updated: Oct 12, 2021 8:59 AM

Catholics4Change Launches Global Community

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — October 10, 2021

The founders of Catholics4Change, an online forum dedicated to the prevention of clergy child sex abuse, have launched the Catholics4Change Community. The virtual and global platform allows Catholics, survivors, and advocates to communicate and collaborate virtually.

“We didn’t want the efforts of these amazing people from around the world working to prevent child sex abuse to be limited by chain emails, conference calls and social media,” said co-founder Kathy Kane, a social worker who advocates for policy reform.

“During the pandemic, people have become more comfortable in virtual settings,” says co-founder Susan Matthews, who was an editor at The Catholic Standard and Times in the early 90s under publisher Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua. “We’ve built this private membership community to go way beyond a website, Zoom or online meetup group. It’s a fully-equipped international hub that can be customized by the members.


Clergy abuse survivors and advocates ready for meeting with newly-announced Vatican ambassador

October 11, 2021 (Joint Press Release E.C.A , Nate's Mission, SNAP)

In an open letter to Vatican ambassador nominee Joe Donnelly, leading survivor-activists and advocacy organizations have requested a meeting to discuss actions and solutions to address the ongoing clergy abuse and coverup crisis. 

In the letter, survivors express hope that Donnelly’s nomination will open up negotiations between US survivors and the Holy See. Donnelly has placed human rights at the top of his agenda in the US relationship with Pope Francis and the Vatican. The rape and abuse of children and its institutional concealment constitute one of the most serious violations of human rights and religious liberty of children in the United States and around the world. Despite the prevalence of ongoing revelations of abuse and coverup across the country, this issue has never been addressed by a US President or State Department even though there is incontrovertible evidence of a relationship between the coverup of these crimes in the United States and Vatican law, policy, and practice. 


The Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement allowed the Catholic Church to escape justice

It failed residential school survivors, and it failed the many Catholics of goodwill who expected better of their spiritual leaders


Thousands of paedophiles active in French Catholic Church since 1950, commission finds

France 24 - October 3, 2021 

Some 3,000 paedophiles have operated inside the French Catholic Church since 1950, the head of an independent commission investigating the scandal told AFP, days ahead of the release of its report.

The commission’s report is due to be released on Tuesday after two and a half years of research based on church, court and police archives, as well as interviews with witnesses.

Sauve, senior French civil servant, said the report, which runs to 2,500 pages, had attempted to quantify both the number of offenders and the number of victims.


Inside the Church That Preaches ‘Wives Need to Be Led with a Firm Hand’


SNAP Network is a GuideStar Gold Participant