Priests vs. People

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Apr 22, 2003

The priests of one of America's most gay-friendly dioceses have issued a statement of support for their embattled bishop.

While saying they respect the efforts of others in the abuse crisis, the statement said the priests believe "we will all be best served by the stability of continued episcopal leadership of Archbishop Kelly and his proven public commitment to seek justice and to right past wrongs."

Louisville's Archbishop Thomas Kelly has received unwelcome scrutiny during the priest-abuse crisis, most recently when a 1983 memo came to light showing that he had permitted a priest to remain a pastor after he admitted sexually abusing a 15-year-old boy, and lay groups have called for his resignation. The fact that the priests of the archdiocese are aligning themselves with their bishop and against the dissatisfied laity points to a cultural fault line. Is it a coincidence that, in the St. Bernadette's Parish listing of America's gay-friendly parishes, all three Kentucky listings belong to the Archdiocese of Louisville, including the cathedral Church of the Assumption?