Father Corapi on Administrative Leave - An Update from Rev. Michael Sullivan, J.C.L.

[Pork_Roll]

Fr. John Corapi has been suspended from priestly functions because of an accusation against him from a former employee. There seems to be a great deal of speculation and confusion regarding what this entails.

When an accusation arrives at the desk of a Religious Superior or a bishop, the procedure calls for a quick, confidential assessment as to the veracity of the accusation. With the advent of the Dallas Procedural Norms the necessary pieces of information required before imposing administrative leave varies from diocese to diocese and Order to Order. In most cases, if an accuser knows the name of the priest, the location at the time of the alleged incident and the year the priest was serving, the accusation is considered “credible.” The accused is supposed to be provided with the opportunity to respond to the accusations in a face-to-face meeting with his Superior prior to the imposition of suspension or administrative leave. In Father Corapi’s case, this never happened.

When a priest is on administrative leave he is to refrain from any public actions as a priest, such as offering Mass or hearing confessions, or from dressing as a priest in any public forum. The decree from his superiors clearly spells out limitations upon Fr. Corapi, but does not preclude him from speaking publicly provided he does not dress as a cleric and does not offer Mass publicly. Fr. John Corapi has observed these directives. Church bodies are to observe these limitations, though the order does not apply to lay organizations or Church organizations beyond the scope of what has been decreed.

Several Catholic media sources have removed Fr. Corapi from their outlets. This is over and above what is required by canon law and the Dallas Norms. Nothing in the order placing Father Corapi on administrative leave precludes distribution of previously recorded materials. Santa Cruz Media is in full compliance with Canon Law and the administrative leave under which Fr. Corapi is functioning.

Fr. Corapi is doing all in his power to cooperate and work with his Religious Society to see that this allegation is quickly cleared up and he is allowed to return to full ministry. The length of this administrative leave is strictly up to the Society and their process of inquiry before a decision is rendered.

We continue to ask everyone to pray for Fr. Corapi, for the accuser and for a quick resolution to this matter.

God bless you,

Rev. Michael Sullivan, J.C.L.

 

[JRKH]

Thank you for this update. Very informative.

Peace
James

 

[Teelynn]

Seems to me there is a lot of confusion with the new Dallas Procedural Norms, however, if the rules differ from one diocese to another, you might get a heavy hammer in one and not in the other, depending on where you are. This may put some of our priests and Bishops in jeopardy, and is something that will probably need to be addressed in the near future. The pendulum has swung from one end of the spectrum to the other. Seems to me that Satan is much smarter than we are. He pretty much knows how to put us between a rock and a hard place.

 

[Shoshana]

Prayers goin gup for a quick, and swift return to his powerful ministry…God bless Fr Corapi and all concerned…

 

[markomalley]

Do you have an authoritative link, other than Father Corapi’s website (or some other blog that doesn’t have a link to the document’s source, either)?

I have yet to see that from a source that is independent. Has anybody checked with Fr. Sullivan to see if he, in fact, wrote that?

I ask this because I have not seen any independent source (a Catholic news outlet, Fr. Sullivan’s parish web page, the page for Justice for Priests and Deacons, or other source that is not a party to this matter) with the content on it. That makes it suspicious to me.

You might want to consider Deacon Greg Kandra’s take on this issue.

Don’t get me wrong, I really, really like Fr Corapi’s preaching. I would even go so far as to characterize myself as a fan. But the more he and his Santa Cruz media speaks, the deeper the hole he is digging.

You may wish to contrast him with Padre Pio. You will note a significant difference on how each handled persecution coming from within the Church hierarchy. Just a thought.

 

[centurionguard]

Do you have an authoritative link, other than Father Corapi’s website (or some other blog that doesn’t have a link to the document’s source, either)?

I have yet to see that from a source that is independent. Has anybody checked with Fr. Sullivan to see if he, in fact, wrote that?

I ask this because I have not seen any independent source (a Catholic news outlet, Fr. Sullivan’s parish web page, the page for Justice for Priests and Deacons, or other source that is not a party to this matter) with the content on it. That makes it suspicious to me.

You might want to consider Deacon Greg Kandra take on this issue.

Don’t get me wrong, I really, really like Fr Corapi’s preaching. I would even go so far as to characterize myself as a fan. But the more he and his Santa Cruz media speaks, the deeper the hole he is digging.

You may wish to contrast him with Padre Pio. You will note a significant difference on how each handled persecution coming from within the Church hierarchy. Just a thought.

Interesting citation of mentioning (“Deacon Kandra Take”).
I’m surprised any priest even if they were privy to such information as to any allegations against any priest would have a bishops permission to make such matters public.

Usually this information would be released publicly by the bishop himself if he thought it was necessary to do so.

Sounds like conjecture to me. At any rate I too will offer Mass prayers for Father Corapi.

I kinda think Satan’s minions are hard at work to put a stop to Father Corapi’s blessed ministry.

Prayers Offered.

Peace
Chris