Details of Fr. Phil Audet's Removal

Many parishioners in the Diocese know that Fr. Phil Audet was placed on administrative leave from his position at the Shrine of the Most Holy Redeemer, but few know exactly why he was removed.

Rather than retell the story, please read this letter, which was anonymously faxed to all parishes in the Diocese in April 2010. This appears to be what finally forced the hand of the Bishop in placing Fr. Audet on leave.

Supporting documentation in the form of copies of the Netflix rentals can be viewed here:

Netflix 1

Netflix 2

Netflix 3

After Fr. Audet was removed, Mr. Michael La Rocca was installed as Lay Administrator of the Shrine. La Rocca was the Bishop's Master of Ceremonies, founder of Imago Dei,  and in an openly homosexual relationship.

The Bishop went from having someone in charge at the Shrine who we can only hope had no more than a latent interest in other men to one that was openly gay.

La Rocca was then fired from his position at the Shrine after just a few months.

Call to Prayer:

O Blessed Lady of the Tears, we entrust and consecrate the priesthood to your Immaculate Heart!  During this time of trial and suffering, we pray that you renew the priesthood by making priests holy in imitation of the Heart of the Good Shepherd.  We pray in reparation for the sins of the priesthood and we pray for all victims of their sins.  

Grant, O Lady of the Tears, an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the priests that they may be authentic witnesses of your Son Jesus Christ Our Lord.  May we wipe away your tears by comforting your Immaculate Heart by praying the rosary and adoring the Heart of Jesus your Son in the Most Holy Eucharist present in every Catholic Church in the world. Give all priests and seminarians a deep love and devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist and to you, their loving Mother.  Grant that every priest and seminarian will daily spend one hour with Jesus in the Eucharist and daily pray your most holy rosary.  Grant all priests and seminarians the gift of purity, the gift of chastity and the gift of the divine love of your Son.  May they proclaim the truth without fear, with love and with courage.  

Entreat our Heavenly Father to strengthen and carry our Holy Priest, Fr. Phil Audet, during his time of tribulation that he may know the peace of Christ.

We ask all of our prayers through the Tears which you shed at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ your Son who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Fr. Kenny and Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church

Fr. Bill Kenny has been named Pastor of Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church. This is his second pastorship. He is currently the Pastor of Christ the King Catholic Community.

This is the same Fr. Kenny that I wrote about earlier that admitted to stealing from an elderly parishioner.

Not only has Fr. Kenny been retained as Pastor of the parish where he admittedly was involved with financial impropriety, which put the Dioceses in a position for a lawsuit, but now he has been promoted and his responsibilities increased. In the meantime, the Bishop has inexplicably sent away a priest (Fr. Mark Gantley) who has been lauded by those working closely with him as an excellent parish administrator.

This is an interesting appointment made by the Bishop. It is no wonder that the faithful here in Las Vegas are questioning the soundness of decisions made by our Shepherd.

Fr. Gantley Letter Writting Campaign

Here are some further details in the case of Fr. Mark Gantley's sudden dismissal from St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church.

After Fr. Gantley was told that his "services were no longer needed in the Diocese" a letter writing campaign to the Bishop was launched by supporters of Fr. Gantley. This campaign generated an estimated 800-1,000 letters (or more). Supporters of Fr. Gantley had circulated this letter, encouraging parishioners to "let their voices be heard". The only response from the Bishop was the same basic form letter to anyone who had written to him, a copy of which can be read here.

Almost all of the St. Francis ministry heads signed this letter in support of Fr. Gantley. The names and signatures of ministry heads have been removed because I did not obtain permission to publish them. I deleted the 3rd page of this letter because it contained signatures only and was not part of the text of the letter.

In addition this letter was sent to all the priests in the Diocese, appealing for their help or intercession. Sadly, only two priests responded.

The letter writing campaign made it clear that a solid number of parishioners wanted Fr. Gantley to stay and that they approved very highly of his administration abilities (those same abilities which were put into question by the Bishop).

According to this timeline of events provided by the Letter Campaign organizers, Fr. Gantley was ejected from both his office at the parish and his home at the rectory on the very day of his dismissal. It was conveyed to me by individuals close to Fr. Gantley that he was thrown out without any assistance, guidance or support whatsoever by the Diocese.

I was also provided a short history of what has occurred from Fr. Mark's removal until now is as follows:

Just after Fr. Gantley left, Msgr. Kevin McAuliffe was put in as Administrator pro tem, with Fr. John Assalone as Parochial Vicar. This temporary arrangement soon gave way to an arrangement that was portrayed by the Bishop to be more permanent, with Fr. Charles Urnick as Parish Administrator for both St. Francis and his home parish in Laughlin, Nevada and Fr. John Assalone continuing as Parochial Vicar.

But just a few short months later, Fr. Urnick had resigned, citing health problems and stress from running two parishes. This is when Fr. Steven Hoffer was brought in from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and was named Parochial Vicar while Fr. John assumed his position as Parish Administrator.

I have received a lot of comments and information since I have put up the initial Fr. Gantley post. It has even attracted Fr. Gantley himself to become a follower to this site. Fr. Gantley's profile states:

"My reputation was unfairly damaged as a result of my removal by Bishop Pepe. I joined as a follower of this blog after a message was posted about me to let people know that I am still a priest in good standing who has returned to my home Diocese of Syracuse and am currently assigned to a small rural parish. Pepe told me that the reason why I was removed from St. Francis was due to my administration of the parish -- the very thing for which many supporters praised me. Good administrators often have vocal critics."

The issue of his dismissal continues to be one that inspires strong feelings in all who knew Fr. Gantley, and they continue to seek answers to the many unanswered questions surrounding this situation.