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  SNAP Representatives Meet with New Green Bay Bishop

News-Chronicle [Green Bay WI]
Downloaded December 24, 2003

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - The new bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay met Tuesday with representatives from the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests to discuss concerns about clergy sexual abuse and outreach to victims.

It was the first meeting between the group and the Green Bay Diocese, said Peter Isely, SNAP's Midwest Regional Director. Isely and a Green Bay SNAP member met with Bishop David A. Zubik and Sister Mary Bride Grubbs, the diocesan victim assistance coordinator, for about two-and-a-half hours.

"We were trying to open a dialogue with the new bishop," Isely said Tuesday night. "The bishop was very cordial and very engaged in the conversation."

Zubik was installed Dec. 12 as the 11th bishop of the 135-year-old diocese, which includes 16 counties in northeast Wisconsin and serves more than 381,000 Catholics in 186 parishes.

Isely said they discussed the mediation between victims of sexual abuse by clergy and the Milwaukee Roman Catholic Archdiocese; the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, approved by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; and the settlements between victims and dioceses occurring across the country.

Zubik wants to go beyond the charter and expressed his commitment to working closely with SNAP, Isely said.

The groups plan to meet again soon, according to a news release from the Green Bay Diocese.

"The tone of the meeting was positive and pastoral," Zubik said in the release. "We agreed to meet in good faith, that we would be honest with one another and keep at the forefront the concerns and needs of those who have been abused. I believe that happened."

 
 

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