Press Releases

By Immediate Release
National Survivor Advocates Coalition
June 1, 2012

http://nationalsurvivoradvocatescoalition.wordpress.com/press-release/

Nothing less than a full, independent investigation should be demanded by the Catholics of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee into golden parachute payments for perpetrator priests to voluntarily seek laicization.

For this outrageous raid on their given in good faith money, NSAC calls upon the Catholics of Milwaukee to take a stand, speak up and do what’s right. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be.

Priest perpetrators in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee during Archbishop Dolan’s tenure were staked with a golden carrot of at least $10,000 and a possible $20,000 to get out and get lost.

All they had to do was start the paperwork to pick up $10,000, wait for the papers to come through and their bank balances climbed by another $10,000. All this for abusing children.

This was on top of whatever amount of money they collected while on paid vacation or receiving pension benefits as a coyly categorized “unassignable” priest.

This is a children protection policy?

The $20,000 per willing perpetrator that Dolan was so willing to dole out came from the collection baskets of the parishes of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee through the diocesan assessment. There is no tooth fairy for diocesan coffers. This money came from the wallets, the purses, and the coin jars of in the pew Catholics.

If Vatican action on ridding the priesthood of rapists and sodomizers worked too slowly for Dolan, a call to the local police station wouldn’t have involved near the paperwork or process time that a laicization case would. A call to the police station would also have saved the good Catholics of Milwaukee from tossing $20,000 bouquets at “unassignable” priests to use the diocese’s clever language of deceit and deflection recorded in the official minutes of the Finance Council. And the gilded carrot approach held no promise that laicization would come faster because the perpetrator priest was $20,000 richer.

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The minutes include this paragraph:

“Currently unassignable priests are receiving full salaries and are budgeted under the Vicar for Clergy. There is a proposal to reduce their benefit to be the same as the current pension benefit, $1,250 per month and also offer $20,000 for laicization ($10,000 at the start and $10,000 at the completion of the process). Also, they remain on our health insurance until they find other employment. The final effect of all this is not known at this time and it may be a wash with the current budget.”

So far, no one on the diocesan Finance Council has provided evidence of objection to this scheme, including the Auxiliary Bishop Richard Sklba. This is the same auxiliary bishop who did not object to the previous Archbishop Rembert Weakland, lifting nearly a half million dollars from the good Catholics of Milwaukee to pay off a former lover.

Please note the date of this meeting: March 7, 2003. The crisis in its Boston’s incarnation broke on January 6, 2002.

This is not long ago in a galaxy far, far away. Sadly, this is creativity with in the pew Catholics’ money that was rewarded with a red hat.

—- Contact: Kristine Ward, National Survivor Advocates Coalition (NSAC) KristineWard@hotmail.com 937-272-0308.

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List of 130 accused Minnesota abusive clerics, church staff, nuns to be provided

Rev. Rudolph Henrich publicly ‘outed’ as serial child molesting Minnesota priest

No more minimizing and hiding heinous child sex crimes ! No more secrets !

WHAT

Holding signs and childhood photos at sidewalk multiple news conferences, clergy sex abuse victims and supporters will herald a hopeful end of the insidious secrecy, minimizing and hiding heinous child sex crimes and sexual exploitation.

They will hang symbolic May Baskets with an unprecedented list of known villainous Minnesota cleric’s names and assignments on the chancery doors. They will “ring the chancery door bell” but not run away. They will wait for church officials and demand them to add names and assignments of those missing from our list, and:

? Announce and discuss the list of 130 villains,

? Ask why Minn. church officials continue to keep clergy sex crimes secret and thus continue to keep children in harm’s way,

? Speak publicly for the first time about a priest known to have abused children, Rudolph Henrich,

? Urge anyone who may have seen, suspected or suffered crimes to call police not church officials.

WHO

Clergy sex abuse victims and child abuse prevention advocates and members of the support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org).

WHEN

Tuesday, May 1 at 1 p.m.

WHERE

Outside these Catholic headquarters:

Archdiocese St. Paul & Minneapolis, 226 Summit Ave., St. Paul

Diocese of Winona, 55 West Sanborn St., Winona

Diocese of New Ulm, 1400 6th St., New Ulm

DETAILS

Sexual abuse of children by pedophile priests, monks, brothers, nuns, deacons, and other religious, went unchecked because Minnesota church leaders ignored the problem or worked to keep it secret.

It seems the lessons of secrecy’s insidious nature have not dawned on diocesan leaders. Open declarations about accusations and actions need to be made, bringing forth other victims and healings. Sunshine is needed to cleanse the pulpit and light the paths for victim recovery. No more minimizing and hiding heinous child sex crimes, no more secrets.

Our Criminal and Civil law exists to punish wrongs, compensate victims for injury, and deter further wrongdoing. The best way to deter further wrongdoing is to expose the full scope and scale of sexual abuse and exploitation. If we don’t know what church officials knew and did, how can we be sure that they won’t turn around and do it again?

“This is a public safety crisis, a child safety crisis that needs to be investigated,” Bob Schwiderski, Minnesota SNAP Director says. “We need to know who they are, where they were and where they are now. How can there be thousands of crimes committed by over 130 clergy/religious offenders across the state of Minnesota and there be no accountability?” he said. Schwiderski notes that some of the named villains are members of religious orders and that religious order officials do not typically make public the names of their accused members, and the archdiocese/dioceses claims it is not responsible for them though they have historically helped to staff its parishes and schools.

What is not known is the magnitude of the abused children involved. This beginning report of 130 alleged offenders – who have not previously been named by the Minnesota dioceses – is a clear example church officials have not assisted in the legal punishment or public safety actions of protecting children by exposing clerics for their crimes and misdeeds committed while wearing a collar or other religious clothing.

Historically, the bishops of Minnesota have acted irresponsibly with their handling of religious based abusers and are acting negligently with regard to child safety now. It is alarming they seem to wash their hands of these villains knowing full well what they have done and will likely continue to do, and consider the matter resolved.