St. Paul's Cathedral Priest Injured in Incident, by Alan Collins, WBRC, August 20, 2011

St. Paul's Cathedral Priest Injured in Incident

By Alan Collins
WBRC
August 20, 2011

http://www.myfoxal.com/story/15297105/st-pauls-cathedral-priest-injured-in-incident

A catholic priest was listed in critical condition at UAB Hospital Friday after an incident with a person who reportedly had accused the priest of interfering with his marriage.

Thursday afternoon, someone assaulted Father Emmanuel Isi, an associate pastor at St. Paul's Cathedral. Joey Sheehan from the Catholic Diocese who considers Father Isi a counselor and a major influence in his life, was shocked at the news.

"It's unbelievable," Sheehan said. "He is my priest. My father. He has helped me out so much. He is a remarkable human being."

Others at St. Paul's shared those sentiments.

"I was absolutely shocked. He is a wonderful man. Holy. Self sacrificing priest who has been so compassionate. So giving. So receptive to this parish," Terri Dorman said.

"I was horrified. It's very sad. Very sad news. We've had Father Isi here for the last couple of years," Jack Nelson said.

Friday morning, the Catholic Diocese of Birmingham released the following statement:

"We would ask for your prayers for Father Isi and for his recovery. We are still trying to determine what happened that afternoon."

Late Friday night, the Diocese emailed an updated statement to FOX6 News:

The Diocese has learned that the individual who inflicted the grave injuries to Father Emmanuel Isi had accused Fr. Isi of interfering with his marriage. This is not the first time this man has made this accusation against Fr. Isi. After the first accusation, the Diocese instructed Fr. Isi not to have any further contact with this man or his wife. While we continue to pray for the recovery of Fr. Isi, we are also looking further into this matter.

Isi's injuries are reported not to be life threatening.

Still a lot of people can't understand who would harm a priest.

"Who would do that? Why would anyone do that? He is there to help others. To show others the love and life of Christ," Dorman said.

"I love Father Isi. It's heart wrenching. How could somebody do that? Unbelievable," Sheehan said.