SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) Conf 6-11/13, 2004

by blondie 12 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse

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  blondie

  http://www.snapnetwork.org/

  I attended the 2004 SNAP Conference in Denver last weekend. A lapsed JW in the midst of Catholics, something I would never have predicted 2 years ago. We arrived in time for the Friday evening program.

  I heard Barbara Blaine, the founder of SNAP, speak. Yes, a woman is the beginning force behind this group, and what energy she has and conveys. She is a Chicago attorney, working out of the Cook County Juvenile Court.

  http://snapnetwork.org/snap_regional_offices/Local%20Leaders%20Stories/il_Barbara_Blaine.htm

  While she and many have been working on this issue for several years, all things really broke loose in 2002 with the break through in Boston.

  Then we heard from Jack Lavino and Marnie Williams.

  http://snapnetwork.org/snap_regional_offices/Local%20Leaders%20Stories/co_marnie_williams.htm

  I learned the following:

  Harness your anger for good.

  When we speak the truth we stand on solid ground.

  No lie lives forever.

  Saturday, June 12, 2004

  The morning opens with a beautiful continental breakfast. No one cares if you eat or drink during the session. The women don?t have to be in dresses and the men don?t have to be in suits. .

  The first speaker is Marilyn Van Derbur, Miss America 1958, who realized as an adult that she had been abused by her father from the age of 5 to 18. When her own sister, Gwen, came out too, the world in general believed her. But her father died denying it and her still living mother denies it. When her story came out in 1988, it was 5 years after I had told the elders my father abused me. Because my siblings confirmed it, the elders had to believe it but my father and mother still deny it. She is my hero, the first person that helped me not feel odd. After all, if it can happen to Miss America from the "perfect" family then it was not my fault.

  http://www.darkness2light.org/KnowAbout/hope_van_derbur.shtml

  http://www.missamericabyday.com/content/aboutBook.aspx

  Jason Berry, author, "Vows of Silence" and "Lead Us Not Into Temptation"?Vatican and Papal Involvement

  He talked about institutional lying and that 97% of Catholics want to remove the bishops who allow abuse.

  Recently the John Jay report came out.

  http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/churchstudy/main.asp

  The Catholic Church thought that now they could drop this issue of abuse. But SNAP has pressed for a second and continuing audits.

  Cardinal Law of Boston while resigning from Boston has been rewarded by the Pope with a position in Italy as which he will be able to vote for the next Pope.

  He talked about the separate groups in Ireland and Italy that are also fighting clergy sexual abuse. They are held back by different laws of discovery.

  He talked about the Legion of Christ, whose founder is an accused pedophile priest who is opening up schools all over the US. Berry documents this is his book "Vows of Silence."

  Some Catholics slip back into denial, placing child security in the Church.

  Yet in 306 AD a law was drafted against clerics having sex with young boys?this is not something new.

  1200 AD, priests were forbidden to have sex with their wives; then priests took unofficial wives.

  1051 AD Father Peter Damian sent letters to church authorities that something must be done about sex with children.

  He brought out there is no accountability, no separation of powers in the Catholic Church.

  BREAKOUT SESSIONS

  The Healing Power of Telling Your Story?Jim Parker, Tucson, AZ, author and SNAP Leader

  David France

  http://snapnetwork.org/books_section/review_our_fathers.htm

  My associate attended this and convinced me that I should tell my story. I have made a rough outline and started filling it in. Doing this is therapeutic for the teller and those who read it. I can?t tell you how many stories I heard from the platform, all ordinary people, already hurt and kicked by the religious leaders, yet brave enough to stand up against them.

  Getting the Word Out: Reaching Members of the Media?David Clohessy, National Director, SNAP, St. Louis, MO

  I attended this one and learned ways to deal with the media. I am fortunate that the SNAP group I am associated with has an excellent person with already existing contacts. I am hoping that I can give my story anonymously this year.

  I learned to plan around an event?a convention/assembly.

  I learned about leafleting with information that isn?t attacking just informing.

  1. Reporters are neither friend/foe; just doing a job
  2. Do not take rejection personally
  3. Be persistent w/o being annoying
  4. Make it easy on the press by providing all the info on both sides.

  Abuse Within Other Denominations?Reverend Linda Daniels-Block, Boulder, CO, currently a Lutheran pastor of 25 years experience, Bill Bowen, Silent Lambs

  www.silentlambs.org

  http://www.silentlambs.org/newsletter/NewsLetterItem.cfm?SendoutID=255

  It was enlightening to see that other religions besides JWs and RCs are struggling with how to handle sexual abuse. Linda brought out how she did not always have the support of the church authorities in her Lutheran synod but it was necessary for each pastor to stand up for the victims even if it means putting your job on the line.

  Bill Bowen?s comments can be found at the URL above.

  Women?s Support Group

  I chose this because this are things you just don?t feel comfortable talking about in front of men. Think about it, the WTS makes women abuse victims go to men and then have to tell the gory, physical details and then have to repeat them to the abuser.

  I found that I knew the right things to say. I have 3 e-mails from women who find comfort in my experience and courage. My courage?their courage humbled me.

  Men?s Support Group

  Again, people felt safe and comfortable. It is so hard for men to seek help. Yet here was a venue where safety and support was given without fear of it being used against you.

  Colm O?Gorman, Director, One in Four, Dublin Ireland?Survivors Organizing in Ireland

  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/correspondent/2681141.stm

  http://u.tv/newsroom/indepth.asp?pt=n&id=31043

  http://breaking.examiner.ie/2003/04/09/story94811.html

  http://www.oneinfour.org/

  Some statistics he shared:

  27% abused in 17 (one in four)

  1987 the Catholic took out abuse insurance although they said they knew of none before 1992.

  This is not a religious issue?rape of children is a criminal, social, political issue.

  Canon (religious) law is no more applicable than the rules of golf.

  The Catholic Church is a black hole.

  The Vatican as a member of the UN is subject to its charter for children?s rights, article 39:

  Article 39

  States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to promote physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of a child victim of: any form of neglect, exploitation, or abuse; torture or any other form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; or armed conflicts. Such recovery and reintegration shall take place in an environment which fosters the health, self-respect and dignity of the child.

  http://www.unicef.org/crc/fulltext.htm

  Bill Bowen

  (see previous URL)

  Miscellaneous Comments:

  Tom Doyle, ex-Canon Lawyer (the equivalent of a WTS lawyer)

  http://snapnetwork.org/news/otherstates/doyle_loses_job.htm

  WE are the church

  I am a recovering Catholic

  "Sick to hell of it, not going to take it any more"

  3 things required

  1. Full and unconditional responsibility of sin/crime?not a burden on the victim.
  2. Make restitution, free and just reparation
  3. Give real proof that offender will not have opportunity to repeat

  Observations:

  Many of the people there came forth 2 years ago and immediately formed groups in their areas for support and to battle the Catholic hierarchy. Seeing their stories moved others in their area to come forth and take action. When one victim/survivor comes forth?others do, it takes it out of the darkness; don?t protect their secrets.

  Perpetrators hide behind religion to prey?their protectors hide behind the law to protect their personal power/reputation. God and Christ don?t need their help because they show by their actions they do not speak for or represent him.

  Don?t forget that LINKUP has a facility for support and healing in Louisville, Kentucky, called the Farm.

  http://www.thelinkup.org/farm/survivorapp.pdf
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  Gadget

  Thanks for the info Blondie.
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  Kenneson

  Hi Blondie,

  You would make an excellent reporter: concise and to the point. Thanks for sharing.
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  Lady Lee

  Thanks Blondie

  As a therapist I have worked with many people who were abused by people in religious authority. Sad that too many people will belive the adult and even more so when they have some religious power
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  blondie

  Sunday, Jun 20, 2004

  Texas News

  
  

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  Posted on Sun, Jun. 20, 2004

  Fugitive priest worked in remote parishes: Newspaper report Associated Press DALLAS - A fugitive priest accused of molesting an altar boy in Costa Rica was put to work in two remote parishes in Honduras by a prominent Roman Catholic cardinal but fled from the village of Guinope days ahead of police, The Dallas Morning News reported. The newspaper, which has conducted a yearlong investigation of runaway Roman Catholic priests, said in its Monday editions that Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez, a prominent candidate to succeed Pope John Paul II, put the Rev. Enrique Vasquez to work in the parishes from last year until March. Rodriguez, head of the Archdiocese of Tegucigalpa, did not respond to written questions from the newspaper. The Rev. Juan Lopez, a top adviser to Rodriguez, told the newspaper that the cardinal was too busy to be interviewed. Vasquez had fled criminal accusations in Costa Rica in 1998 and served in at least two dioceses in the United States before fleeing again and spending time in a clergy treatment center in Mexico, the newspaper reported. Vasquez helped start a training center for Catholic lay people in El Paraiso, Honduras, and was the resident priest in Guinope, Honduras, before fleeing, The News reported. Interpol Lt. Julian Rivera said Tegucigalpa church officials "realized they had a problem, and they got rid of him." Interpol is searching for Vasquez on behalf of the Costa Rican government. Interpol has not questioned Rodriguez. Several members of the parish in Guinope told The News that Vasquez led their congregation for about seven months. They want him to return. "The kids were crying for him when he left," said Ilsa Celinda Rodriguez, who looks after the church grounds. "He had a special group of young altar boys." She said he planted flowers, got people to attend services and formed youth Bible study groups. Delvis de Lagos said Vasquez came to raise the church. "He organized the parish," de Lagos said. She said Vasquez told them he was leaving to care for his ill mother in Miami. The newspaper said relatives of the priest said Vasquez's mother had heart problems but hadn't left Costa Rica. The newspaper said Lopez initially told it that Vasquez never worked in the Tegucigalpa area, but later said he might have seen Vasquez at a meeting of archdiocese priests. Lopez said Guinope residents were wrong to think of Vasquez as their pastor. "Our people in the countryside don't understand titles," Lopez said. "Maybe they thought he was a parish priest, but that doesn't make him one." Lopez said Vasquez had not worked there on a permanent basis. "He's not our priest; he doesn't belong to the archdiocese," he said. Angel San Casimiro, who was Vasquez's bishop in Costa Rica, said he didn't know how Vasquez got a job in Honduras. He said Rodriguez didn't check with him. He said he freed Vasquez to work abroad in the mid-1990s after he said Vasquez admitted abusing a 10-year-old altar boy. He said he didn't recommend Vasquez for work elsewhere after the priest was accused of abuse in a criminal complaint. The newspaper reported that Vasquez began working in Guinope in August 2003. An arrest warrant was issued by authorities in Costa Rica in March, more than five years after the criminal case was opened. Bruce Harris, a child protection advocate for Casa Alianza, said he had asked Rodriguez recently about Vasquez. He said Rodriguez told him that Vasquez had left Honduras some time ago and he didn't know where he went. Casa Alianza is a Catholic-affiliated charity and has an office in Costa Rica. "The Catholic church in Latin America has not yet learned from what has been happening to the church in the United States," Harris said. "The church here is still trying to cover up." The newspaper said Rodriguez, 61, has spoken against telling police about allegations of abuse. "For me it would be a tragedy to reduce the role of a pastor to that of a cop," Rodriguez said in a 2002 news conference in Rome as the abuse scandal in the United States was exploding. "We are totally different, and I'd be prepared to go to jail rather than harm one of my priests. We must not forget that we are pastors not agents of the FBI or CIA." Rodriguez was made a cardinal in 2001. http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/state/8972372.htm?1c News Sports Business Entertainment Multimedia Marketplace NY Newsday.com CATHOLIC CHURCH SCANDAL Sex-abuse priests still working The Dallas Morning News found that the church has moved many accused priests to parishes abroad Granite Commercial Industries LLC Grover Home Headquarters Poseidon Pool and Spa Master Spas and Leisure American The Remodeling Company Country Fair Entertainment Park

  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
  
  June 20, 2004, 8:17 PM EDT
  
  DALLAS -- An international movement of Roman Catholic priests out of countries where they have been accused of abusing children has continued even after the abuse scandal that swept the U.S. church in 2002, The Dallas Morning News found in a yearlong investigation.
  
  Hundreds of priests accused of abuse have been moved from country to country, allowing them to start new lives in unsuspecting communities and continue working in church ministries, the newspaper reported in yesterday's editions.
  
  The priests lead parishes, teach and continue to work in settings that bring them into contact with children, despite church claims to the contrary, the newspaper said.
  
  Vatican officials declined to comment Friday after an overview of the investigation was featured on National Public Radio.
  
  In one case, the Rev. Frank Klep, a convicted child molester who has admitted abusing one boy and is wanted on more charges in Australia, was placed in Apia, Samoa, in the South Pacific. Australia has no extradition treaty with Samoa.
  
  Klep told the newspaper that neither he nor the church feels an obligation to tell anyone about his past. Few, if any, locals are aware of his history.
  
  "I'd prefer to just leave it," Klep said. "If I felt I was still a risk to their children, then I'd think differently. But I don't think I am at risk anymore."
  
  The Morning News said Klep's order, the Salesians of Don Bosco, has long moved priests accused of sexual abuse from country to country, away from law enforcement and victims.
  
  The order has a provincial office in New Rochelle and runs churches, high schools and other organizations in several U.S. cities, including Mary Help of Christians Church on East 12th Street in New York City and churches in Elizabeth and Paterson in New Jersey.
  
  Influential Salesian officials have spoken out against cooperating with law enforcement agencies investigating sex abuse allegations.
  
  "For me, it would be a tragedy to reduce the role of a pastor to that of a cop," said Salesian Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez of Honduras, who has been mentioned as a possible successor to Pope John Paul II. "I'd be prepared to go to jail rather than harm one of my priests."
  
  Among the newspaper's findings:
  
  Nearly half of the more than 200 cases identified involved clergy who tried to elude law enforcement. About 30 remain free in one country while facing ongoing criminal inquiries, arrests warrants or convictions in another.
  
  Although most runaway priests remain in the church and should be easier to locate than other fugitives, police and prosecutors often fail to take basic steps to catch them.
  
  Dozens of priests who are no longer eligible to work in the United States have found sanctuary abroad.

  Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc.
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  kls

  Thankyou as usual Blondie, reading this i feel as if i was there. You are the best.
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  blondie

  bttt

  don't forget to check www.silentlambs.org for updates and new info
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  Jankyn

  Thanks, Blondie. As usual, a concise and useful report.

  I find it interesting that the Catholics and the JWs both allow molesters to move from congregation to congregation without warning anyone. That, more than anything, indicates the lack of respect and love they have for their members.

  And now the Catholics are moving them out into other (Third World) countries, where the parishoners will have even fewer resources to protect themselves--less access to media reports, more respect for the hierarchical system than those doggone Americans who are lawsuit happy. I wonder about the relationship between this development with the Catholics and the growth of JWs in Third World countries...not so much moving where the need is greater as moving where the pickings are easier.

  Jankyn
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  blondie

  Thanks, jankyn.

  What I learned was that every religious organization seems to deal with clergy sexual abuse the same way, protect the pedophile and punish the victim.

  Whether it is the Catholic Church, the WTS, the LDS (Mormon) Church, or Protestant churches, the hierachy is the same, keeping the general population in ignorance and vulnerable.

  By combining our efforts and working at changing the laws at the state leve regarding clergy reporting and statutes of limitations, victims will have a means to fight back and pedophiles will not be able to hide behind the church.

  Blondie
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  Yerusalyim

  Blondie,

  I'm curious how it is you think the Catholic Church is punishing the victims, that, in the past, and at least in one current case the pedophile was protected I've not seen any cases where the victim or accusser (not all accusers are victims, some lie) has been excommunicated, shunned, etc.

  I'm not a big fan of SNAP, David Clohessey seems to have an agenda.