By Kevin Lavery, KWMU
St. Louis – As Belleville bishop Wilton Gregory prepares for his new job as head of the Atlanta archdiocese, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests says it wishes he'd had more success in pushing his peers towards real reform.
Gregory spent most of his tenure as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops embroiled in the clergy sex abuse scandal.
He played a key role in creating a zero tolerance policy in June 2002. But since then, SNAP national director David Clohessy says Gregory has retreated against some who feel the policy has gone too far.
"He clearly was held back by many of his brother bishops who were far more rigid about responding to the sex abuse crisis," Clohessy said.
Clohessy says it's too early to tell if recent reforms are stemming the tide of sex abuse cases, but adds more victims are encouraged by others who've come forward with their claims.
Clohessy also said in a statement on Thursday that while he wished Gregory had done more to get fellow bishops to make the reforms, "it's clear [Gregory] has a better track record than most American prelates on the sexual abuse issue."