Msgr. Robert M. Chabak

Summary of Case: A Newark, NJ priest ordained in 1972, Chabak pastored a number of parishes throughout the archdiocese, and was given the title "Monsignor" in 1995. In 2004 he was placed on administrative leave after an accusation surfaced that he had sexually abused a boy in the 1970s, when the boy was around 15 years-old. The abuse is said to have occurred over a three-year period. Chabak has been retired since 2008.

Ordained: 1972
Retired: 2008

     

Start Stop Parish/Assignment Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1972

Newark archbishop was Thomas Aloysius Boland (1952-1974), followed by Peter Leo Gerety (1974-1986).

1979 St. Mary of the Assumption

Elizabeth

• Chabak was accused in 2004 of the sexual abuse of a 15 year-old boy at St. Mary's in the 1970s. The abuse is said to have occurred repeatedly over a three-year period.

NJ 2/4, 4/4, 5/5 Assumption had a grade school with 518-356 students, and a high school with 497-684 students.

1979

Gerety was succeeded by Theodore Edgar McCarrick (1986-2000).

1988 Christ the King Hillside NJ 1/5, 1/3, 1/2 Christ the King had a school with 257-235 students.
1988 1989 Absent on Sabbatical Leave        
1989 1990 St. Theresa's Kenilworth NJ   Chabak is said to have worked at St. Theresa's for seven months.
1990 1997 SS. Peter and Paul Hoboken NJ 1/4, 1/3 SS. Peter and Paul had a school with 200-244 students.
    Presbyteral Council Newark NJ    
1994 1997 Dean of Central Hudson Region Deanery 9 Newark NJ   Chabak is first noted to be a Monsignor in the 1996 Directory.

1997

John Joseph Myers replaced McCarrick (2001-).

2006 St. Valentine's Bloomfield NJ 1/3, 1/4, 1/5

St. Valentine's had a Catechism program with 170-215 students.

Although he is listed in the 2005 and 2006 Directories as at St. Valentine's, Chabak was placed on Administrative Leave in November 2004.

2002 2004 Dean of North Essex Deanery 16 Newark NJ    
2006 2008         Chabak is not indexed in the 2007 or 2008 Directories.
2008 2012 Retired Normandy Beach NJ    

 

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1973-2012)

• Priest accused of sex abuse in Elizabeth, Star-Ledger [Newark, NJ], November 16, 2004
• Zoominfo.com

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Chabak's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on June 18, 2013