PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
For immediate release: Thursday, Sept. 26
Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )
We respectfully disagree with DA Seth Williams. The Philadelphia archdiocese deserves no kudos for reporting this priest to law enforcement. And one incident cannot be deemed some sort of “sea change” in a long-standing, deeply-rooted culture of secrecy, recklessness, callousness and deceit.
Church officials reported Fr. Brennan, we believe, because they didn’t want to go to jail like Msgr. William Lynn has. It’s self-interest, not reform, that prompted this call.
We are disappointed that Catholic officials are being praised for simply, finally, obeying the law.
We caution Mr. Williams and Philadelphia Catholics against premature complacency. Premature complacency protects on one. Only sustained vigilance protects kids.
Here’s what the 2005 grand jury report said about Fr. Brennan:
He was psychologically evaluated or “treated” four times. (NOTE-Archbishop Charles Chaput wants us to believe church officials are ‘reforming.’ But we suspect they still send sexually troubled clerics to the same discredited church facilities they’ve always used.)
Depending on the level of scandal threatened by various incidents, Cardinal Bevilacqua either transferred Fr. Brennan to another parish with unsuspecting families or ignored the reports and left the priest in the parish with his current victims. The Cardinal’s managers advised Fr. Brennan to “keep a low profile,” but never restricted or supervised his access to the youth of his various parishes.
When Cardinal Bevilacqua retired, Fr. Brennan was still a parochial vicar at Resurrection parish in Philadelphia, despite reports from parish staff that he had inappropriate contact with several students from Resurrection’s grade school. In June 2004, Fr. Brennan was appointed Chaplain at Camilla Hall, a retirement home for nuns.
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