Bishop Susan Brown Snook Title IV case denied, goes up on appeal

An Episcopal parish in the Diocese of San Diego has filed a Title IV appeal following the dismissal of their complaint against Bishop Susan Brown Snook (“Bishop Susan”) by the national church. Anglican Watch remains deeply concerned about the case, including Bishop Susan’s failure to resolve the parish’s underlying concerns of her own accord. Moreover, we believe that the case was improperly dismissed, and as a result, an important opportunity for health and wholeness was missed.

At issue is the Diocese’s handling of multiple allegations of sexual harassment in the parish involving a parishioner.

Specifically, when the rector of the parish learned of the matter, s/he allegedly sought advice from the Diocese, which told the parish to handle the matter internally.

When the rector and parish did so, individuals within the parish allegedly retaliated against the rector, who properly retained an attorney to provide guidance on how to respond appropriately.

But when this information reached the Diocese, Bishop Susan suspended the rector, stating that s/he had hired an attorney and thus was adversarial to the parish.

Even worse, the Diocese publicly berated the rector and sided with the perpetrator of the sexual harassment and his allies, establishing a person adversarial to the rector and vestry to be the point of contact in this matter, versus the rector or wardens.

For the record, it is relatively rare for complaints about sexual harassment to be false, with most experts citing fewer than 6 percent of cases to be false.

Additionally, when, as in this case, three persons have experienced harassment, we think it highly unlikely that all three made false statements, or colluded to develop similar stories. To the contrary, we see myriad indicia of veracity, including fact-based testimony from a group of highly articulate, professional parishioners. This contrasts favorably with the knee-jerk responses we sometimes see, in which parishioners simply contend, “But Fr. So-and-So is so NICE. He would never do such a thing.”

Moreover, although our research into this case has been relatively limited, we see no sign that the parishioners in question filed a retaliatory Title IV case as claimed by the Diocese.

Looking to the future, our concerns are multi-faceted, comprising:

• Damage to the internal dynamics and interpersonal relationships within the parish.
• Irreparable damage to the reputation of the Diocese, Bishop Susan, and others.
• Implicit endorsement of sexual harassment in the Diocese.
• The possibility of litigation, which, if it happens, will prove expensive, traumatic, and damaging for all parties involved.
• Most importantly, we are concerned about harm to the career of a dedicated priest who is, by all accounts, both highly respected and sincerely caring.

Moreover, we note that the Episcopal Church has a dismal track record when it comes to sexual harassment.

Yes, we had a flurry of #metoo changes prior to the pandemic, but the changes were quickly forgotten.

Similarly, the recent debacle in which a Title IV complaint against a bishop for alleged sexual harassment by Julia Ayala Harris, the president of the House of Deputies (PHOD) made clear that, for many, Title IV is an exercise in futility for sexual harassment or other serious misconduct. (The Harris case was unilaterally dismissed by church attorney Brad Davenport, who nonetheless remains deeply involved in many Title IV cases in the denomination.) Indeed, if the PHOD cannot get justice, is there any hope for the rest of us?

Thus, Anglican Watch reiterates its previous position, which is that we encourage the Diocese to hit the pause button, take a deep breath, and focus on healing, reconciliation and justice — all stated goals of the Title IV process. We like Bishop Susan, and very much hope she will turn this situation in a more positive direction.

Furthermore, we encourage the Disciplinary Committee for Bishops to take a similar approach. There is nothing to be gained by brushing this matter off, versus sending it out for investigation and, if the allegations are found to be credible, providing mediation and the requisite pastoral response to all involved.

We are including a copy of the appeal below, but have redacted names of the clergy, the parish, gender references, and the complainants in this matter in order to provide a safe space for judicatories to hopefully resolve this case in a positive manner.

Our heartfelt sympathy and prayers to all hurt by this truly bungled Title IV case and the underlying sexual harassment.

Photo courtesy EDSD.