Whoa – Archbishop Nienstedt steps down – weak abuse allegation

Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt has removed himself from public ministry (but not resigned his bishopric) pending investigation of allegations he inappropriately touched a boy during a First Communion photograph in 2009.  I find this utterly unbelievable:

The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis today announced that an allegation has been brought by a mandated reporter within the Church to the St. Paul Police of inappropriate touching of a minor male on the buttocks by Archbishop John Nienstedt. The single incident is alleged to have occurred in 2009 during a group photography session with the archbishop following a confirmation ceremony.  [How likely is it that someone is going to try to molest a child, or touch them in a funny way, during a group photo session? This stinks of a set up, more below] Archbishop Nienstedt emphatically denies the allegation. Upon learning of the allegation last week, the archdiocese instructed the mandated reporter to make the matter known to the police. The archbishop and the archdiocese stand ready to cooperate fully with the St. Paul Police.

After consultation with the Holy Father’s ambassador to the United States (the papal nuncio), the archbishop will voluntarily step aside from all public ministry while this matter is being investigated, effective immediately. Auxiliary Bishop Lee Piché, in his role as a vicar general, will cover all of the archbishop’s public duties during this time. Father Charles Lachowitzer continues in his position as a vicar general and moderator of the curia.

The archdiocese is mindful of the due process concerns of those involved. There must be justice and due consideration of the rights and dignity of every human person, both the individual involved and the archbishop.

So, another conservative bishop has fallen afoul of the dumb and persecutorial “Dallas policy” of zero tolerance.  ANY supposedly “reasonable” allegation results in instant dismissal.  But as a bishop, he has a lot more power and options than do most priests so accused. I’m not saying we didn’t have a terrible and rampant epidemic of homosexual-oriented priest sex abuse in the Church – Lord knows, we did. But I am saying that the situation is so skewed now that even dumb allegations like this one can get a priest, or even a bishop, black-balled and run out of ministry.  And there is a huge amount of money out there to encourage unscrupulous souls into lying for a quick buck.

Is that what happened here?  I don’t know, but I’ll say this reeks of a set up.  Even someone totally lost in sin would have to be pretty stupid or pretty high to try to grope a kid at a public event like is being claimed here.  It seems most likely to me that this is, at best, someone making a radically abusive interpretation of an accidental movement, or at worst an open play to crush another conservative-ish bishop. As happened with Bishop Finn in Kansas City.

The Minneapolis Archdiocese has a substantial gay mafia in the priesthood.  There has been a lot of scandal.  Archbishop Nienstedt has stood pretty strong for Church belief in opposition to fake gay marriage, and has taken a few steps to ostracize some of the more egregiously open homosexuals under holy orders there. There remains the massive scandal of the Collegeville Benedictine Monastery in his Archdiocese, where there is a large group of more or less openly homosexual priests and monks who not only utterly trash the Liturgy on a constant basis, but who have let it be known they oppose Archbishop Nienstedt’s efforts to instill some celibate discipline among the priests there.   There has been a good deal of open opposition by priests to Archbishop Nienstedt.  Minnesota is a surprisingly liberal place, but then again, maybe it’s not, given all the northern Europeans who live there.

I doubt there is anything to these allegations.  I, of course, could be wrong, but even what has been drummed up seems weak as dishwater on the surface.  I think this is another effort to smear an orthodox bishop.  Even if the allegations don’t stick, Nienstedt will be very weakened by them and will forever be tarred in the press for the allegations even having been made.  Every press report from now until kingdom come will reference these allegations, even if they prove totally groundless.  Which is, of course, the point.

Wow do we need to pray. This is awful.

BTW, Tancred, who lives in Minneapolis, seems to agree with my assessment.