Letters regarding support of fundraising for Paul St. Charles 12-06-05
December 5, 2005
Reverend Father David Choby
Diocesan Administrator
The Catholic Center
2400 Twenty-first Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37212
Dear Father Choby:
We in SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, are horrified
to learn of a fundraiser at Holy Rosary Parish in Nashville for Paul
St. Charles. Public, church-supported fundraisers or other public
displays of support for sex-offending priests are hurtful to victims of
abuse. We believe that if the parishioners had been fully
informed of the number of his victims, of the determination of credible
allegations by the diocese of Memphis, and of the process of defrocking
having been initiated, they would never have been willing participants
in such an activity. As the acting administrative shepherd of the
diocese of Nashville, is it not incumbent upon you to insure that the
members of your parishes are aware of the information regarding all
sex-offending clergy?
We are also told that Father Klasek as well as other Nashville priests
have made statements which demonstrate a lack of knowledge of the facts
concerning Paul St. Charles or are an intentional misrepresentation of
the facts. The diocesan review board of Memphis has deemed the
rampant abuses of Paul St. Charles to be credible, and Bishop J.Terry
Steib of Memphis has acted on their recommendation that St. Charles be
defrocked. There are currently three additional active cases
against him in the courts. Do the clergy of Nashville know this
and have they conveyed this to their parishioners?
The actions by Holy Rosary and the lack of intervention by you in the
halting of such activity sends a horrible message to victims who have
been harmed: victims in Holy Rosary Parish and victims elsewhere who
will hear. To allow fundraisers for molesters certainly cannot be
interpreted in any way other than making the statement that victims do
not count and do not matter. Should all sexual offenders come to
Holy Rosary for financial support? Do all parishes plan o support
the criminals rather than the victims? That is the message sent
and may seriously contribute to continuing abuse.
We again ask you to publish the secret list of the sex-offending
clergy. You have acknowledged seven of these perpetrators.
Who are they? The people have a right to know. Victims ask
that you go to Holy Rosary, acknowledge this lack of sensitivity and
publicly apologize for not fully informing them of the truth. We
ask for a response to our request that you make these parishioners
aware of Paul St. Charles’ status and allow victims to come with you or
separately to speak to the parishioners.
The fundraiser was offensive. It has damaged efforts to restore
hope that the faith community would ever accept the real facts of the
life-long devastation and the terrible injustice to the children,
teens, and vulnerable adults by clergy in this and other
dioceses. Please update the people on the progress of the
defrocking of Paul St. Charles and why this was the decision of the
Memphis diocese. Please explain the cases against him in civil court.
Please tell the names of the seven sex-offending clergy that you
reported to the John Jay study in 2002 but have kept secret from the
Catholics of the Nashville diocese.
Sincerely,
Susan Vance
Tennessee Co-director of SNAP
8324 South Burchfield Drive
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Mike Coode
Nashville Coordinator of SNAP
415 Chesterfield Avenue
Nashville, TN 37212
Ann Brentwood
Tennessee Co-director of SNAP
3142 Harrington Court
Maryville, TN 37803
Cc: The Most Reverend J. Terry Steib, S.V.D., Bishop
of Memphis, The Catholic Center, 5825 Shelby Oaks Drive, Memphis, TN
38134-7389
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December 5, 2005
Father Stephen A. Klasek
Holy Rosary Church
190 Graylynn Drive
Nashville, TN 37214-2706
Dear Father Klasek:
We in SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, are horrified
to learn of a fundraiser at your parish for Paul St. Charles, accused
priest living in Nashville. As advocates and victims of clergy
sexual abuse, it is beyond our comprehension that you would endorse and
support in your parish a fundraiser for a child sexual predator.
The message that is conveyed by such an action to all victims,
including those in your parish and those yet to come forward, is that
they do not count and that you and the church support the perpetrators
of these terrible crimes. Your actions are indicative of a
clerical insensitivity to the devastating life-long impact of child
sexual abuse that has contributed to the acceptance and cover-up of
such egregious behavior on the part of clergy.
It is an outrage that you would not make known to your parishioners
that even your own hierarchy has deemed the rampant abuses of Paul St.
Charles as credible and that he is in the process of being defrocked
with three additional active cases against him in the courts. The
facts about this abuser have been misrepresented and totally twisted in
order to condone the collection of money for a pedophile.
His many victims are deeply wounded by your actions and ask that you
publicly acknowledge this lack of sensitivity and publicly apologize
for this grave error in judgment.
Somewhere in the parish is a young girl being molested by a relative or
a boy being abused by a coach or youth leader. If these young
people see adults they love and respect publicly rallying around an
accused perpetrator, they will be less likely to report their
victimization to their parents, the police, or other authorities.
They will be scared into remaining silent, and their horrific pain will
continue. If there is a woman in the parish who has been raped or
a man who has been molested as a teen, then their pain has been ignored
and their horrible abuse minimized. As a compassionate caring
pastor, we request an immediate admission of the wrong that has been
done here.
We would request an opportunity to have victims speak to your
congregation to explain the hurtful nature of this fundraiser. Perhaps
if they hear from some of the victims they will better understand how
such a blatant lack of compassion for those abused by clergy is against
all that Christ demanded of us.
We await your response to this letter. On behalf of the victims
of clergy sexual abuse across the state of Tennessee, we hope that such
a public fundraiser will never be condoned or supported again at Holy
Rosary Parish or any other parish in this state.
Sincerely,
Susan Vance
Tennessee Co-director of SNAP
8324 South Burchfield Drive
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Mike Coode
Nashville Coordinator of SNAP
415 Chesterfield Avenue
Nashville, TN 37212
Ann Brentwood
Tennessee Co-director of SNAP
3142 Harrington Court
Maryville, TN 37803
Cc: Father David Choby, Administrator, Diocese of Nashville
Hans Toecker, Chancellor, Diocese of Nashville
*******************************************
December 5, 2005
Mr. Jim Guschke
President Parish Council - Holy Rosary Church
190 Graylynn Drive
Nashville, TN 37214-2706
Dear Mr. Guschke and Members of Holy Rosary Parish Council:
As members of SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, we
believe it important to raise awareness among your church community
that this action has been very hurtful to clergy abuse victims, as well
as other victims both in your parish and in surrounding parishes.
The review board of the diocese of Memphis has deemed the rampant
abuses of Paul St. Charles to be credible, and he is in the process of
being defrocked with three active civil cases against him in the
courts. The facts about Paul St. Charles have been misrepresented to
the parishioners; this is the only explanation for condoning a
fundraiser for an abuser. His many victims are deeply wounded by your
actions.
If you had taken up a collection in support of an abortion clinic,
would you have been stopped by the pastor or other officials of the
diocese? If you had been collecting money to promote the death penalty,
would you have been stopped by the pastor or other officials of the
diocese? The answers, we believe, would be definitely yes. Why then the
fundraiser for a credibly accused pedophile with multiple victims and
three lawsuits? Truly, it is offensive and hurtful to victims.
Please allow some of his victims to come and speak to your parish. Let
them hear first hand what he did to them. Listen to any victims, hear
their stories, and then surely you will come to realize how harmful the
actions of having a fundraiser and thereby publicly supporting a sex
offender and sending such a detrimental message to the youth of your
parish.
Please understand that you are not only supporting criminal activity
but are making it very difficult for any other victims of his or other
molesters to come forward. Some child or teen will remain silent and
alone in their pain because they have now seen that the adults around
them support the sexual molesters. Over time Paul St. Charles has been
guilty of the soul murder of many victims, even in the eyes of his own
church, and yet he is supported while his many victims are ignored.
What a cruel slap in the face to all his many victims so egregiously
harmed in their youth and carrying to this day the life-long
destruction of childhood sexual abuse by this man.
We ask that you and the other members of the parish council call Father
David Choby, diocesan administrator, and Mr. Hans Toecker, Chancellor
of the diocese, and ask them to explain the abuses of Paul St. Charles.
Ask them to update you on the progress of the defrocking of this priest
and why this was the decision of the Memphis diocese. Ask them to
explain the cases against him in civil court. Ask them to tell you the
names of the seven sex-offending clergy that they reported to the John
Jay study in 2002 but have kept secret from the Catholics of the
Nashville diocese.
Sincerely,
Susan Vance
Tennessee Co-director of SNAP
8324 South Burchfield Drive
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Mike Coode
Nashville Coordinator of SNAP
415 Chesterfield Avenue
Nashville, TN 37212
Ann Brentwood
Tennessee Co-director of SNAP
3142 Harrington Court
Maryville, TN 37803
Cc: Reverend Father David Choby
Father Stephen A. Klasek