Three Steps Archbishop Should Take Right Now

SNAP
January 31, 2014

http://www.snapnetwork.org/mn_three_steps_archbishop_should_take_right_now

On Thursday, one of Archbishop John Nienstedt's public relations staffers said "We have continuously made ourselves available to law enforcement to address any outstanding questions they may have. . ."

[St. Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese]

On Wednesday, St. Paul's police chief said “We have not had the opportunity to speak with Fr. McDonough.” (McDonough is a key figure in this scandal.)

[Pioneer Press]

Someone's lying. We suspect it's a Catholic official, not a law enforcement official. We suspect it's Jim Accurso, not Captain Tom Smith.

It's time for Nienstedt and his staff to fully cooperate, not just claim to cooperate, with police and prosecutor. There are two steps he should take immediately.

First, this week, Ramsey County prosecutors publicly begged victims, especially those who were forced or pressured to sign “gag orders” by church officials, to step forward.

Nienstedt should put this plea in every parish bulletin this Sunday, verbatim, and include contact numbers for local law enforcement agencies.

Second, Niestedt should issue a public statement today promising that he will not in any way retaliate against victims who break those “gag orders.”

Third, he should announce that he's suspended Fr. McDonough and started defrocking him because of McDonough's complicity in decades of cover up and his refusal to answer questions from police.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 15,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)