NEWTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Matt Viser, Globe Staff | October 3, 2005
NEWTON -- Following an emotional farewell service, more than 1,000 parishioners, fellow priests, and other supporters of the Rev. Walter H. Cuenin marched 3 miles yesterday to the headquarters of the Archdiocese of Boston to protest the forced resignation of their beloved pastor.
''This despicable attempt to smear the reputation of a decent man must not stand," said Giovanni Fazio, a parishioner of Our Lady Help of Christians Church. ''Even more disturbing, however, is what these events reveal about the archdiocese's continued failure to be open, honest, and just."
Cuenin resigned last week amid allegations that he received a $500 monthly stipend for the performance of baptisms, weddings, and funerals, and a leased Honda Accord he shared with visiting priests. The archdiocese has not given him a new assignment.
As about 1,500 people crowded into pews and stood along walls in the cavernous church, Cuenin smiled broadly as he delivered a 10-minute homily that was upbeat, but at times defiant.