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	Diocese Appoints New Pastor to a Church Shaken by Scandal By Stacey Stowe The New York Times [Connecticut] June 4, 2006 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/04/nyregion/ 04pastor.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin The Bridgeport Diocese announced yesterday that a priest with experience in helping troubled parishes was appointed the new pastor of St. John Roman Catholic Church in Darien, whose pastor was forced to resign last month amid accusations that he used church money to pay for limousine rides, fine dining and real estate. The new pastor will be Frank C. McGrath, 61, the pastor of Our Lady of Peace in Stratford and director of clergy personnel for the Bridgeport Diocese. He was ordained in 1970. In 2002, Father McGrath worked for three months at St. Mary's Church in Ridgefield when a priest there resigned after he was accused of molesting a teenage boy. Father McGrath will replace Michael J. Fay, who resigned as pastor of St. John on May 17. Father Fay, who earned $28,000 a year, is under federal investigation in connection to allegations that he used church money to pay for luxuries including cruises and other travel. "Father McGrath is the right person to inspire and lead parishioners on the path to unity and healing," William Scheyd, pastor of St. Aloysius in New Canaan and interim administrator at St. John, said in a statement released by the diocese. In a letter being distributed at St. John's this weekend, Bishop William E. Lori of the Bridgeport Diocese promised enhanced financial procedures and controls at the Darien church. He described Father McGrath as a "loving and experienced shepherd" who will work with the Rev. Bill Platt, the resident priest at St. John, and the Rev. Michael Madden, its parochial vicar. Last month, parishioners expressed concern that Father Madden would be reassigned after it was disclosed that, unbeknownst to the diocese, he and the church bookkeeper had hired a private investigator, Vito Colucci Jr., to examine the finances at the church after they suspected wrongdoing. Mr. Colucci said he discovered more than $200,000 in questionable expenses in his review of records.
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