Top German church official’s resignation letter to Pope Francis was made public and cites the sexual abuse scandal as a catastrophe, SNAP responds.
Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Germany submitted his resignation to Pope Francis in May of this year; on June 4th, 2021, the details of his resignation letter were made public. In his letter, Marx stated, “ it was important to share the responsibility for the catastrophe of the sexual abuse by church officials over the past decades.”
Marx was elevated to Cardinal in 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI and certainly was aware of the findings of a report issued by the Universities of Giessen, Heidelberg, and Mannheim. In the statement, Germany’s Catholic Church admitted to ‘at least' 3,677 cases of child sex abuse by the clergy between 1946-2014. We believe this number is much higher.
As head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State, Pope Francis can make a significant statement by handing Marx his walking papers. We believe that would demonstrate responsibility instead of disregard and overlooking victims. German prelates, past and present, have known more about abuse cases and chose to do nothing; Cardinal Marx is no exception.
CONTACT: Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director (517-974-9009, [email protected]), Michael McDonnell, SNAP Communications Manager ([email protected], 267-261-0578)
(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 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
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