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Attack on Byzantine priest in Indiana investigated as hate crime

August 22, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Gary, Ind., Aug 22, 2018 / 11:00 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Monday morning’s assault of a priest of the Ruthenian Eparchy of Parma is being investigated as a hate crime, a police official has told the Chicago Tribune.

A statement attributed to the eparchial chancery said Fr. Basil Hutsko “was attacked and knocked unconscious” in the altar server’s sacristy at his parish after celebrating the Divine Liturgy.

Fr. Hutsko, 64, is pastor of St. Michael parish in Merrillville, Ind., immediately south of Gary.

The priest was choked and his head slammed to the ground, making him lose consciousness.

According to the statement, the attacker said, “This is for all the kids” as he assaulted the priest Aug. 20.

“All clergy are now targets and need to be vigilant. However it must also be clear that Fr. Hutsko was a random target. He is NOT guilty of any sex abuse,” read the statement, which was signed by Fr. Thomas J. Loya, who is pastor of Annunciation Byzantine Catholic Church in Homer Glen, Ill.

Jeff Rice, spokesman for the Merrillville police, said the local force alerted the FBI because “it is considered a hate crime” given the attacker’s words, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The attack comes in the wake of the release of a Pennsylvania grand jury report on clerical sex abuse of minors which discussed abuse of more than 1,000 minors by some 300 priests in the mid-Atlantic state.

Fr. Hutsko was attended to by medics at St. Michael’s, and was then examined at a nearby hospital. Rice said that the priest was “definitely bruised and banged up.”

Fr. Steven Koplinka of St. Nicholas Byzantine parish in Munster, Ind., told the Chicago Tribune that the priest was “attacked from the back and he didn’t see who it was.”

“It’s just like they’re targeting the wrong guys, you know?” Fr. Koplinka said. “The rest of us try our best to be good priests and unfortunately this happened.”

Depending on the circumstances, in addition to a civil crime, the attacker could have committed a delict under canon law.

If the attacker were a Latin Catholic, he could have violated CIC 1370.3, which says that “A person who uses physical force against a cleric or religious out of contempt for the faith, the Church, ecclesiastical power, or the ministry is to be punished with a just penalty.”

Were the attacker an Eastern Catholic, he would be subject to CCEO 1445.2, which says one who uses physical force against a cleric “is to be punished with an appropriate penalty.”

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News Briefs

Cardinal Tobin denies knowledge of ‘gay subculture’ in Newark

August 20, 2018 CNA Daily News 9

Newark, N.J., Aug 20, 2018 / 07:00 pm (CNA).- In an Aug. 17 letter to the priests of Newark, Cardinal Joseph Tobin has said he has not been told by priests about a “gay sub-culture” in the Archdiocese of Newark.

The letter was written in response to a CNA report published the same day, in which Newark priests described their experience in seminary and ministry in the archdiocese. Tobin’s letter specifically addressed allegations, included in CNA’s report, of sexual misconduct on the part of two priests.

CNA’s article included testimony about homosexual activity in the Archdiocese of Newark, from six priests who spoke to CNA on the condition of anonymity. The priests’ experience spanned across several decades under the leadership of Archbishop Theodore McCarrick and Archbishop John J. Myers.

CNA reported that, in 2014, Fr. Mark O’Malley was – according to multiple sources – removed from his position as rector of the archdiocesan college seminary, and placed on medical leave following an incident in which he was accused of hiding a camera in the bedroom of a young priest.

Cardinal Tobin’s letter, which surfaced on the internet over the weekend, addressed the matter directly.

“In April 2014, Father Mark O’Malley, who was serving at St. Andrew’s College, experienced a serious personal crisis for which he received a psychological evaluation and subsequent therapy. In April 2015, he was deemed fit for priestly ministry. He hopes to serve as a hospital chaplain.”

CNA also reported last week that Fr. James Weiner, currently pastor of the parish of St. Andrew’s in Westwood, NJ, was under renewed investigation by archdiocesan authorities. Weiner was identified as the previously unnamed man referred to in the allegations of sexual assault made by Fr. Desmond Rossi, now a priest of the Diocese of Albany, NY.

Rossi has alleged that, in 1988, he was sexually assaulted by two transitional deacons. In 2004, Rossi received an out-of-court settlement of approximately $35,000.

Recently, Rossi said that his allegation was found “credible” by an archdiocesan review board but that no action was taken.

Tobin’s letter confirmed that Weiner’s case had been examined by a review board in 2003 “even though it did not involve an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor.” The cardinal also confirmed that he had ordered the matter reopened earlier this month because of “new information and out of an abundance of caution in these most difficult times.”

This weekend, the bulletin at Fr. Weiner’s parish carried a notice that Cardinal Tobin’s office had indefinitely delayed the ceremony formally installing Weiner as pastor of the parish because of a scheduling conflict. Tobin had been scheduled to install Weiner in the post on Sept. 15.

Addressing reports of harassment and active sexual behavior by some priests, both in the seminary and in the archdiocesan presbyterate, Cardinal Tobin said that “no one – including the anonymous ‘sources’ cited in the article – has ever spoken to me about a gay subculture in the Archdiocese of Newark.”

Tobin began his letter by acknowledging the ongoing scandal of sexual abuse in the Church, following the allegations against Archbishop McCarrick and the release of the Pennsylvania grand jury report. The cardinal said that these events “have shaken and saddened the bishops and priests of the Archdiocese of Newark.”

Turning to the CNA report, Tobin said that while there was “much more to communicate about these open wounds,” he was writing the letter in response to “allegations of misconduct” against the two priests of the archdiocese, Weiner and O’Malley.

The cardinal closed his letter by expressing his hope that CNA’s sources were not actually priests of the archdiocese. However, CNA confirms that the sources for the story were priests of the Newark archdiocese, along with one priest member of a religious order.

The Archdiocese of Newark declined to offer comment or respond to questions from CNA regarding the letter.

Tobin’s letter concluded by encouraging priests to refer media inquiries to the archdiocesan director of communications.

Added Cardinal Tobin, “I repeat my willingness to meet with any brother who wishes to share his concerns regarding allegations in the press or personal experience in our local Church.”

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