Pope's Recent Statements on Pedophile Priests Offers Little Relief for Victims
By Alessio Galletti
Tandem (Canada)
April 24, 2008
http://www.corrieretandem.com/viewstory.php?storyid=8244
"We were expecting more," said David Clohessy of SNAP (The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests), commenting on Pope Benedict XVI's statements about the sex abuse scandal involving priests and minors in dozens of American dioceses on his recent visit to the U.S. But for Clohessy, national director of the association, which offers help to victims in the U.S. and Canada, the Pope's recent statements offer little for victims.
 |
"We're nowhere closer to what needs to be done. Lots of words and many promises, but nothing concrete. The kind of media campaign where nothing is done to prevent it from happening again," Clohessy explains.
A lot can be done according to Clohessy, but a start would be to discipline the bishops who he labels as corrupt, in order to create a safer Church.
"The problem isn't just the priests who commit the abuse, but also those who subsequently cover up the abuse, trying to hide [it]," says Clohessy, who adds, "You can be suspended for molesting a child, but there is no punishment for those who cover up the abuse."
The silence, he says, is also on the part of victims who on one hand are too profoundly ashamed to speak out, and on the other hand are intimidated by religious authorities.
"It's crucial that victims of abuse continue to come forward and speak to police, otherwise nothing will change. But if they personally speak out, there's hope that things will be different."
To get an idea about how widespread this phenomenon is, consider the numbers acknowledged by Catholic authorities: in North America alone, 5,000 priests are charged with abuse of 14,000 victims.
"We think, however, that the numbers are low," says Clohessy. "According to our association, and to sociologists, victims could number over 100,000." And as evidence that the phenomenon is not a thing of the past, there were 700 new cases in 2007.
Compensation to certified victims has cost the Catholic Church $2 billion, but that is still not enough according to Clohessy.
"Depression, isolation, [drug] dependencies, shame, inability to trust, difficulties in maintaining stable relationships: this is just a short list of problems faced by the victims of abuse," Clohessy says in a bitter tone of voice. "One can also lose his faith if he feels betrayed not just by the priest but also by the chain of command that safeguards him."
The Pope too, who today stated that he is deeply ashamed for the abuse perpetrated by priest, helps to maintain this wall of silence.
"In 1962 the Vatican released a secret document, Crimen Sollicitationis, whch imposed silence on priests and bishops, and victims and their families, or risk being excommunicated from the Church," explains Irene Deschenes, volunteer worker with SNAP. "The same document was re-sent to all dioceses in the world in 2001 by cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope) when he was head of the Congregazione per la Dottrina della Fede [Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith]."
For Deschenes, the Pope's statement comes too late, and like Clohessy she asks for concrete actions on the part of the Church to solve a problem, which is huge in Canada as well. "We're 10 years behind the U.S.," she says. "Here, few victims have found the courage to speak out, and the associations are also less organized."
"The problems however are the same," she continues, "with bishops prepared to cover up for the guilty, without considering that many of these priests committing sexual abuse had been transferred here from the U.S."
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.