Now the Bad News

New York City, N.Y., Jul 5, 2019 / 10:52 pm (CNA).- A New York priest who told a prospective seminarian to lie to Church officials about his sexuality has been indefinitely suspended from ministry after a canonical penal process found him guilty of serial sexual misconduct.
“I write to share some unpleasant and somber news concerning Father John Duffell, your just retired parish administrator,” Cardinal Timothy Dolan wrote in a July 1 letter to parishioners of New York’s Blessed Sacrament Parish.

“Father Duffell has been directed not to publicly exercise his priestly ministry due to an allegation from the past that he abused his position of authority in a violation of his promise of celibacy.”
“The allegation was made first to the District Attorney, and then brought to our attention. This allegation involves an adult; it does not involve a minor. It is important that the archdiocese take such allegations seriously,” Dolan wrote.

A source close to the priest told CNA that the allegation involved serial misconduct over a period of years.

A spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York told CNA July 6 that the priest was found guilty of the canonical crime of sexual misconduct in an administrative penal process undertaken by the archdiocese. His suspension from priestly ministry is indefinite, the spokesman said. 


The priest has faced criticism for some activities of the “gay fellowship” at his parish.
In 2017, the parish “gay fellowship” partnered with the Born This Way Foundation, an “LGBT-rights” group founded by entertainer Lady Gaga, to hold a fundraising dance at the church hall.
Duffell was pictured in an Instagram photo with Lady Gaga in 2016.

Father Dave Zegar, Womanpriest

"Father" Dave is pastor of St. Andrew Church in Portland, Oregon. From The Oregonian:

"Parishioners from St. Andrews Catholic Church, which has a longstanding commitment to social justice issues, will march in Sunday's Portland Pride Parade with a banner proclaiming their parish identity, despite the wishes of Archbishop Alexander Sample. 

 Monsignor Dennis O'Donovan, vicar general of the Archbishop of Portland, called St. Andrew's pastor, the Rev. Dave Zegar,  on May 31 on behalf of Sample, parishioners say. O'Donovan relayed the message that individuals could walk in the parade but that the archbishop did not want St. Andrew's members to walk as a community."

Zegar

  On June 4, Zegar met with a group of St. Andrew's parishioners, who decided to stand by their 17-year commitment to Portland's gay community. At Mass on Sunday, Zegar shared the group's decision with the congregation, who responded with a standing ovation, according to Tom Karwaki, who chairs the parish's pastoral council."

If I may:

1) Pride is a deadly sin. The Catholic Encyclopedia says  "Pride is the excessive love of one's own excellence" While accurate to describe those who participate in such spectacles, I don't think a priest should be encouraging sin - especially deadly ones.

2) it is typical of the "In your face" approach of the gay community to stage this event on Father's Day.

3) Archbishop Sample should come down on Zegar with a holy wrath. Either he is in direct disobedience to the Bishop, or he is being cow-towed by a segment of his congregation. Either way, he needs to apologize and go away for a while.

Hey! The day a Mass in Spanish and Kanjoval! Pretty amazing, when only about 75,000 people speak this Mayan language peculiar to Guatemala....