Vatican--Pope removes German cardinal as sex abuse crisis catches up, Victims respond
For immediate release, July 2, 2017
Statement by Joelle Casteix of Newport Beach, Volunteer Western Regional Leader for SNAP, the Survivors Network (949-322-7434, [email protected])
The removal of Cardinal Mueller comes on the heels of Pope Francis' May statement that the Vatican has a backlog of 2000 child sex abuse cases. That is inexcusable.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2017/05/14/pope-francis-acknowledges-2000-case-backlog-in-sex-abuse-cases.html
Now that another powerful Vatican official, Cardinal Pell, has been charged with sex abuse in his native Australia, we think that Mueller’s ouster is too little, too late for the 2000 victims who have been languishing for answers. And if that means that there may be up to 2000 priests who have been accused of sexual abuse, have not seen due process, have not been removed from ministry, and who still have access to children, that could be a public safety crisis of epic proportions.
We hope that Cardinal Mueller’s replacement, Monsignor Luis Ladaria Ferrer, takes his job seriously and understands the wide-ranging ramifications of his office. We hope he acts swiftly to protect children, not the church.
We encourage his office to cooperate with civil authorities, not engage in secret cover-ups.
And finally: the only way to end the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church is for the Vatican, through the Office for the Doctrine of the Faith, to make public all of their secret files about the sex abuse and cover-up. We suggest Monsignor Luis Ladaria Ferrer make that job number one.
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 20,000 members. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Contact – Melanie Jula Sakoda (925-708-6175, [email protected]), Joelle Casteix (949-322-7434, [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003, [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