NEWTON (MA)
Boston Herald
By Marie Szaniszlo
Sunday, September 25, 2005
The popular and controversial Rev. Walter Cuenin bid Our Lady Help of Christians in Newton farewell yesterday, making the shocking charge from the pulpit that Boston Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley had forced his resignation - by alleging that the car the congregation leased for Cuenin's use and the monthly stipend they paid him for the last 12 years violate archdiocesan policy.
The charges so angered parishioners that, in a highly unusual move, their own finance council signed a statement saying that the council itself had recommended leasing the car, that the parish had paid priests a stipend before Cuenin even arrived in 1993 and the archdiocese's own audits had never questioned either practice.
``This is clearly such a pretextural reason for getting rid of him. It shows not only is (O'Malley) completely inept, but mean-spirited enough to try to impugn the integrity of Father Cuenin instead of telling the truth, which is that he's simply not in step with the archbishop's demands,'' said Andrew Gately, who has been a parishioner for five years.
Many others in the nearly standing-room-only congregation lashed out at O'Malley for pressuring another beloved, outspoken priest to resign in what they called a growing pattern of intimidation to quell dissent.