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	Delco Priests Among 21 Placed on Leave by Archdiocese By Patti Mengers Daily Times March 10, 2011 http://delcotimes.com/articles/2011/03/10/news/doc4d78552848286200863570.txt [with video] At least six Roman Catholic priests with Delaware County connections were among 21 placed on administrative leave Tuesday while officials in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia investigate allegations that they sexually abused minors. "I want to be clear: These administrative leaves are interim meaures. They are not in any way final determinations or judgments," said Cardinal Justin Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia, in a press release. While on administrative leave, these priests will not be in active ministry and will be living in private residences. "Administrative leave means they cannot practice their priestly ministry publicly. They will not be residing at the parishes and will not have any parish duties or responsibilities," Archdiocesan spokeswoman Donna Farrell said on Wednesday. She noted that parishioners in churches affected by the priests' administrative leave would be informed during services on Ash Wednesday and this weekend. She said the names of all the priests under investigation would not be released to the general public until a final determination of their status with the church is made. "We strongly urge the archdiocese to release the names of all 21 priests immediately so no child is put in harm's way because of ignorance," said Radnor resident John Salveson, state president of the Foundation to Abolish Child Sex Abuse who said his complaints of abuse by a Long Island priest were ignored by church hierarchy. On Wednesday a source confirmed the names of the accused priests, all of which are now missing from the clergy list on the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's website. Two of Delaware County's 46 parishes are lacking pastors' names on the archdiocesan website. The Rev. Paul Castellani was temporarily removed as pastor of St. Philomena Church in Lansdowne and the Rev. Msgr. John Close was temporarily removed as pastor of St. Katharine of Siena Church in the Wayne section of Radnor. The Rev. Mark Gaspar was temporarily removed as parochial vicar of Our Lady of Charity parish in Brookhaven. Also placed on administrative leave was the Rev. Msgr. Michael Flood, pastor of St. Luke the Evangelist Church in Glenside, who was formerly on staff at St. Madeline's Church, Ridley Park, the old St. Michael's Church in Chester and Cardinal O'Hara High School, Marple. The Rev. Joseph Glatts, former pastor emeritus of St. Andrew Church in the Drexel Hill section of Upper Darby, who retired to SS Simon & Jude rectory in West Chester, was also placed on administrative leave as was the Rev. Zachary Navit, who, as a seminarian, served at Our Lady of Fatima and Our Lady of Perpetual Help churches, both in Ridley Township. He is now archdiocesan director of special projects and closures. The suspended priests include nine pastors, five parochial vicars who assist pastors, three chaplains, one pastor emeritus, two retired priests and one archdiocesan administrator based in Delaware, Chester, Montgomery, Bucks and Philadelphia counties. The accused priests are among 37 identified as causes for concern in a recent Philadelphia grand jury report that resulted in the arrest Feb. 10 of four men who were charged with sexually assaulting boys in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Currently free on bail, they are scheduled for a preliminary hearing on March 14. They include two men who formerly served as archdiocesan priests in Delaware County, a priest who belongs to the Oblates of St. Francis DeSales and a Catholic school lay teacher. A former archdiocesan administrator who once served at St. Katharine of Siena parish was also arrested and charged with endangering the welfare of children because he was responsible for investigating clerical sex abuse charges when the abuse allegedly occurred. After the grand jury report was released, Rigali immediately denied the grand jury's claim that any priests with credible allegations of sexual abuse against them were still active in the archdiocese. A week later archdiocesan officials announced that three priests named in the grand jury report were being put on administrative leave while they reviewed sexual abuse allegations against them, two of whom formerly served at Delaware County parishes. Archdiocesan officials also hired Gina Maisto Smith, a former Philadelphia assistant district attorney who prosecuted child sexual assault cases, to review the 37 cases of concern cited by the grand jury. One priest was already on administrative leave and two are incapacitated and out of active ministry. Two are members of religious orders and no longer serving in the archdiocese, but their superiors have been notified by archdiocesan officials about concerns over the abuse allegations. Eight cases were found by Smith to warrant no further investigation. The 21 priests who were suspended will now be investigated by Smith and her team that includes a pediatrician experienced in child abuse cases, a forensic psychiatrist and psychologist, a child advocate and other experts. The recent grand jury convened by Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams was the second one concerning clerical sex abuse. A grand jury investigation launched by former Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham in 2002 revealed in 2005 that 63 priests allegedly abused children as far back as the 1940s, 43 of whom had connections with Delaware County. None could be prosecuted because the statute of limitations had expired. The statute was expanded in 2006 to age 50 for victims. In a statement released on Tuesday, Salveson said: "The cardinal has been saying for years that there are no dangerous priests in active duty in the archdiocese. Today's actions show that he has been deceiving the people in the pews, and supports our contention that the church will only address the horrific problem of sexual abuse by clergy and the systemic cover-up of these crimes by hierarchy, when it is forced to do so under the strong arm of the law." LIST OF PRIESTS NAMED IN DOCUMENT The following priests were put on administrative leave Tuesday while officials in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia investigate allegations of sexual abuse of minors. They were ordained in the years listed beside their names: * The Rev. Paul Castellani (1996), pastor, St. Philomena Church, Lansdowne. * The Rev. Msgr. John Close (1969), pastor, St. Katharine of Siena Church, Wayne section of Radnor. * The Rev. Mark Gaspar (1998), parochial vicar, Our Lady of Charity parish, Brookhaven. * The Rev. Msgr. Michael Flood (1968), pastor, St. Luke the Evangelist Church, Glenside, formerly on staff at St. Madeline's Church, Ridley Park, St. Michael's Church, Chester and Cardinal O'Hara High School, Marple. * The Rev. Zachary Navit (1994), director of archdiocesan special projects & closures, formerly on staff at Our Lady of Fatima and Our Lady of Perpetual Help churches, both in Ridley Township. * The Rev. Joseph Glatts (1966), former pastor emeritus, St. Andrew Church, Drexel Hill section of Upper Darby. Retired to SS Simon & Jude rectory, West Chester. * The Rev. Phillip Barr (1948), pastor emeritus, St. Edmond's Church, Philadelphia. * The Rev. John Bowe (1973), parochial vicar, St. Joseph Church, Warrington. * The Rev. George Cadwallader (1992), parochial vicar, St. Vincent de Paul Church, Richboro. * The Rev. Michael Chapman (1982), pastor, Ascension of Our Lord Church, Philadelphia. * The Rev. Msgr. Frances Feret (1962), pastor, St. Adalbert Church, Philadelphia * The Rev. Mark Fernandes (2004), parochial vicar, St. Agnes Church, Sellersville. * The Rev. Steven Harris (1980), pastor, St. Isaac Jogues Church, Wayne, Chester County. * The Rev. Daniel Hoy (1948), retired, Our Lady of the Assumption rectory, Strafford. * The Rev. Msgr. Joseph Logrip (1972), chaplain, St. Mary's Manor, in residence at St. Stanislaus rectory, Lansdale. * The Rev. Andrew McCormick (1982), pastor, Sacred Heart Church, Swedesburg. * The Rev. Leonard Peterson (1967), pastor, St. Maria Goretti Church, Hatfield. * The Rev. Robert Povish (1990), chaplain, State Correctional Institute, Graterford, in residence at St. Eleanor rectory, Collegeville. * The Rev. John Reardon (1973), pastor, St. John of the Cross, Roslyn. * The Rev. Thomas Rooney (1991), chaplain, Immaculate Mary nursing home, in residence, St. Timothy parish, Philadelphia. * The Rev. Peter Talocci (1986), parochial vicar, St. Patrick parish, Malvern. Contact: pmengers@delcotimes.com
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