Assignment Record – Bishop J. Kendrick Williams Retired:
June 11, 2002 |
Start | Stop | Parish/Assignment | Town/Accusations | State | Position | Notes |
1963 Louisville archbishop was John Alexander Floersh (1924-1967) |
1965 | St. Rita's | Louisville | KY | 3/3 | St. Rita's had a school with 1,021-1,066 students. Williams is indexed and listed as Rev. James K. Williams. |
1965 Floersh was succeeded by Thomas Joseph McDonough (1967-1981) |
1971 | St. Catherine's | New Haven • Williams was accused in a June 2002 lawsuit of sexually abusing a male St. Catherine's high school student in 1969. Williams' accuser said the priest grabbed his genitals and assaulted him during confession, and that Williams had asked him inappropriate sexual questions during previous confessions. He said he came forward when he saw in the news that Williams said he had "never been brutal to anyone" in his life, in response to an accusation by another man. |
KY | 2/2, 2/3 | St. Catherine's had a grade school with 346-260 students, and a high school with 196-121 students. |
1965 | 1971 | Icetown | KY | This was a mission of St. Catherine's in New Haven. | ||
1971 | 1978 | Motherhouse and Novitiate of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth | Bardstown | KY | Chaplain | |
1976 1979 |
1978 1981 |
Senate of Priests | Louisville | KY | ||
1978 Thomas Cajetan Kelly, O.P. replaced McDonough as Louisville archbishop (1981-2007) |
1983 | Church of Our Lady | Louisville • Williams was accused in a 2002 lawsuit of molesting a 12 year-old Our Lady's altar boy in 1981. The abuse is said to have happened once, and consisted of Williams groping the boy and kissing him on the mouth. The alleged victim said he ran home after the 9:30 mass that day and told his father and step-mother. Williams denied the accusation. |
KY | 2/2 | In 1978 Williams changed his name from James K. to J. Kendrick. |
1979 | 1984 | Personnel Commission | Louisville | KY | Director 1981-1984 | |
1978 | 1984 | Archdiocesan Planning | Louisville | KY | ||
1983 | 1984 | Holy Trinity | Louisville • Another man accused Williams in 2002 of having made an inappropriate sexual remark to him when he was a 12 year-old Holy Trinity student. The accuser said he went to Williams for advice, and that Williams asked him if he ever masturbated and added, "It's a wonderful experience and when you do it, come and tell me all about it." |
KY | 1/3 | Holy Trinity had a school with 449 students. Williams was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Covington April 15, 1984 and consecrated June 19, 1984. |
1984 Covington bishop was William Anthony Hughes (1979-1995) |
1988 | Auxiliary Bishop | Covington • A former diocesan groundskeeper accused Williams in June 2002 of making sexual demands on him and that Williams "repeatedly sexually and physically assaulted" him in 1986 and 1987. The worker was a young adult at the time in question. The man's father was maintenance director of the diocese for 42 years. The two men claimed they were fired for complaining about Williams earlier in 2002. Diocesan chancellor, Rev. Gerald Reinersman, denied the men were fired. |
KY | ||
1984 | 1988 | Vicar General | Covington | KY | ||
1984 James Kendrick Williams was bishop of Lexington (Jan. 1988-June 2002) |
1988 | On-Going Renewal | Covington | KY | Williams was appointed first Bishop of Lexington Jan. 14, 1988, and installed March 2, 1988. | |
1988 | 2002 | Bishop | Lexington | KY | Williams resigned June 11, 2002. | |
2002 | 2012 | Retired/Bishop Emeritus | Lexington | KY | In Dec. 2002 the Lexington diocese announced that Williams was moving out of the diocese, to an undisclosed town in the Louisville archdiocese. |
Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1964-1988) • Lexington Bishop Accused, Man says he filed abuse suit to protect others, By Smith Peter Hall, Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY), May 22, 2002
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