Raising voice to urge calm
By SCOTT WALDMAN, Staff writer
First published in print: Friday, October 30, 2009
An advocacy group for those abused by priests is asking people to be sensitive about the victims who come forward.
Mark Lyman, Capital Region director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, said supporters of the Rev. Salvatore Rodino, a Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany priest accused of sexual abuse, should not malign the person who made the allegations.
Rodino was suspended Saturday as pastor of St. Jude the Apostle Church in Wynantskill after the diocese found “reasonable grounds” to believe he had sexual contact with a male teenager 27 years ago while at Blessed Sacrament Church in Albany. As they filed into Sunday Mass, some parishioners of the church Rodino has led since 2005 said his accuser was coming forward only to collect settlement money.
Lyman said Thursday that his group has written a 21-point booklet that offers guidance on the “appropriate and sensitive” way to support accused priests without attacking those who report alleged sex crimes. He said his group, known as SNAP, has asked Bishop Howard Hubbard to distribute it at all parishes in the 14-county diocese.
“Some people can and will believe that an accused priest is innocent,” Lyman said. “That’s fine. But it’s not fine when they act on those beliefs in ways that hinder criminal probes, intimidate vulnerable kids, silence already wounded adults, frighten potential witnesses and scare possible whistle-blowers.”
Diocesan spokesman Ken Goldfarb said he had not seen the pamphlet and was not aware if Lyman had requested that Hubbard or other officials review it.
Also Thursday, the address for a Web site — RodinosVictims.com — was disseminated to members of the media. The site bills itself as “a forum for those who have been silenced” and encourages victims and supporters to share their thoughts.
Rodino, a 1969 graduate of La Salle Institute of North Greenbush, also served at St. Bonaventure in Speigletown, St. Pius X in Loudonville and St. Margaret Mary’s in Albany. He worked at a number of schools in the area, including La Salle, Bishop Maginn High School in Albany and St. Patrick’s Academy of Catskill.
Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=859471#ixzz0VNXM4tSC
Leave a Comment
By Submitting a comment, you agree to the Terms and Conditions of this Site. Any comments that are defamatory, libelous, or slanderous will be removed. For more information, Read the Disclaimer
We encourage you to voice your opinion by commenting on one of our blog or news posts. If you comment, you will be asked for your name and an email address. We understand if you are concerned about revealing identity. Therefore, you don't have to use your real name, and you don't have to use your real email address. You do, however, need to type something into each box.
For example, you could use something like:
Name: John Cardinal McCloskey
Email: Johnny@Cardinal.com