NEWARK (NJ)
Newsday
December 22, 2005, 9:51 AM EST
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) _ A priest who is suing the Archdiocese of Newark for removing him from his position at an Orange school for criticizing the way the church has handled the sex-abuse scandal has been placed on administrative leave, and cannot represent himself as a priest until the matter is resolved.
The Rev. Robert Hoatson, 54, will continue to receive his salary and medical benefits.
In a lawsuit filed last week, Hoatson claims he was wrongly removed from his position as a church schools director at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Orange in 2003 because he publicly criticized American bishops for covering up aspects of the clergy sex scandal.
But church officials say they removed him from the schools job because of concerns about his management and other issues.
"It's sad because what I do best is preach and say Mass," Hoatson told The Record of Bergen County for Thursday's newspapers. "But I'll be back."
Jim Goodness, a spokesman for the archdiocese, told The Star-Ledger of Newark the priest was placed on leave Tuesday because the lawsuit "is in the public eye right now, and it's best left to let the litigation proceed on its own without him acting in priestly ministry."