WISCONSIN
SNAP Wisconsin
Priest’s removal raises more questions than it answers
Kiel parish priest permanently suspended by Milwaukee based religious order
Statement by Peter Isely, SNAP Midwest Director (Milwaukee)
CONTACT: 414.429.7259
The permanent removal yesterday from ministry of Rev. Loren Nys, a Salvatorian priest serving at Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Kiel, while an indication that the Milwaukee based religious order is finally taking steps to reverse their recent documented history of mismanaging and covering up for abusive clergy, still leaves far too many questions unanswered.
The action taken against Nys means that he has committed a criminal or professional act of misconduct or abuse against a child so serious he can never conduct or present himself as a priest again and never should have been allowed to professionally practice for decades.
The Salvatorians, in a press release yesterday, state that the allegations against Nys were proven years ago. Yet, the order kept him working with children and families. And that’s the problem. The Salvatorians have publically and repeatedly claimed for years, including last year when it was proven that current and ongoing revelations of a string of reports of child abuse to church officials against Wauwatosa priest Robert Marsicek were never forwarded to police, that they conduct complete reviews of all reports and files concerning abuse against children by priests. With no criminal justice and independent review of all church abuse files and reports by law enforcement officials or the Wisconsin Attorney General of dioceses and religious orders operating in the state, parents and the public are simply left with what church officials want to tell them in one or two paragraph Saturday press releases.
The biggest question concerning Nys is what could he possibly have done to warrant such serious punitive action? Church officials will only say that it didn’t involve a child’s “private parts”, whatever that means. What professional board of credentialed and licensed occupations working with children in civil society—teachers, social workers or doctors—could possibly issue a ruling against a member like this without describing exactly what the professional and criminal misconduct was and why the license is now being permanently revoked?
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