By Rebecca Lopez rlopez@wfaa.com
WFAA [Dallas TX]
April 22, 2006
http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/tv/stories/wfaa060421_wz_alvarez.5b63ef62.html
There are more questions than answers for parishioners at Dallas' Cathedral of Guadalupe after the popular Father Ramon Alvarez suddenly left his post.
Cathedral employees explained that Father Alvarez had gone on vacation, but a spokesperson for the Dallas diocese said Father Alvarez won't be coming back.
Father Alvarez drove away as News 8 attempted to ask him why he is no longer leading one of the largest Latino congregrations in the United States.
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| Father Ramon Alvarez File / WFAA-TV |
Father Alvarez is scheduled to testify in two controversial trials involving child pornography and sex abuse.
"I've known him and I would never have thought that," one parishoner said. "It's hard to believe."
The first trial begins May 1. Father Alvarez and other church employees are being sued for ignoring warning signs about two childcare workers at St. Pius X church who admitted molesting little girls.
The other case involves Father Alvarez' longtime friend, Rev. Matthew Bagert, who is accused of having pictures of naked boys on his computer. Rev. Bagert was arrested after he and Father Alvarez retruned from a weekend trip together.
In 2002, Father Alvarez admitted to inappropriate contact with a middle-aged man who had sought his blessing. At the time, there were calls for Bishop Charles Grahmann to remove Father Alvarez from the cathedral, but the decision was made to let him remain.
Father Alvarez has led the downtown Cathedral of Guadelupe since the late 1990s, and parishioners told News 8 he is a great person and an exciting leader.
In a brief statement, the diocese said only that Father Alvarez' departure was not related to inappropriate conduct with a minor. No one would say what the priest's future is with the Catholic church—only that for now, he won't be celebrating mass at the cathedral.
The diocese said the cathedral's new rector will be the Rev. Eduardo Gonzalez, who has been serving at St. Edward Church in East Dallas.
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