MASSACHUSETTS
MassLive
By Dan Glaun | dglaun@masslive.com
on February 11, 2016
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, the victims advocacy group that has long clashed with the Catholic Church over its clergy sexual abuse scandal, is not accepting the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield’s apology.
In a pastoral letter released on Ash Wednesday, the Most. Rev. Mitchell T. Rozanski sought to welcome Catholics distanced or disillusioned with the Church back into the fold. The letter included a direct apology for the Diocese’s role in the sexual abuse scandal, which led to more than $12 million in settlements to dozens of victims.
“First and foremost, I apologize to the victims of clergy sexual abuse, their families and friends, and all those scandalized by the Church’s failure to protect our young people and for any lack of diligence in responding,” Rozanski wrote.
In his pastoral letter issued on Ash Wednesday, Bishop Mitchell Rozanski wrote that the church, inspired by the approachable tenor of Pope Francis’ approach to the papacy, is rededicating itself to evangelism.
“Springfield’s bishop is issuing an apology when he should be protecting kids, exposing predators, punishing enablers and releasing abuse records,” wrote Barbara Dorris, SNAP’s outreach director. “Tangible steps will do more to protect the vulnerable and heal the wounded that all the words, gestures and apologies.”
Allegations of sexual abuse in Springfield stretched to the top of the diocese; former bishop Thomas Dupre, who oversaw the first round of discipline against abusive priests when the scandal broke in the early 2000s, was himself accused of child molestation in 2004. Dupre resigned from the diocese and was criminally indicted, but those charges were later dropped due to the statute of limitations on the allegations.
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