Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the reaction of two victims’ watchdog groups, Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) and BishopAccountability.org, to reports this week on sexual abuse:
On Monday, the Vatican issued guidelines on how to address the issue of sexual abuse. The day before, SNAP condemned the guidelines. On Wednesday, the bishops’ conference released the John Jay College of Criminal Justice report on the “Causes and Context” of abuse. The day before, BishopAccountability condemned the report.
We knew their credibility was shot long ago—both are relentless critics of the Catholic Church and neither is open to reason. Regrettably, not everyone has figured them out, and this includes many in the media. Either that, or the enemies of the Church are just given a pass.
What happened this week should be a wake-up call to fair-minded journalists. If the critics of any person or institution are to be deemed credible, they must first pass the test of rationality. But to SNAP and BishopAccountability, evidence doesn’t matter. They’ve made up their minds, and nothing the Catholic Church can do will alter it.
Those in the media who continue to give voice to these irrational sources cast doubt on their own integrity.
