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	Return of Priest Delights Church Burlington Free Press (Burlington, VT) November 3, 2002 RANDOLPH A Catholic priest suspended from his Randolph parish in May amid allegations of sexual abuse of a child returned to his congregation's pulpit Saturday to celebrate afternoon Mass. A crowd of parishioners and supporters filled the church. The Rev. John Milanese said he was delighted to return to active ministry after five long months of hardship. He also expressed resentment over the way Vermont officials handled the investigation of the allegations against him and the way the inquiry ended. "It is good to be with you again," Milanese, 54, told the congregation during his sermon. "I look forward to being your pastor as long as God deems fit." Churchgoers at Sts. Donatian and Rogatian parish said they were overjoyed at their priest's return. Some were overwhelmed. "It's good to see you," parishioner Lisa McMahon said through tears as she embraced Milanese after the service. "We love you. I'm so glad it's behind us. We missed you so much." The Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington placed Milanese on administrative leave in May while the state Attorney General's Office investigated allegations against him of sexual misconduct with a young boy during the mid-1980s. Milanese, the priest at the Randolph parish since June 1995, said he is innocent of the accusations. The state investigation also looked into claims of child sexual abuse involving five other priests. In September, Attorney General William H. Sorrell said his office would not file charges against Milanese because the statute of limitations had expired on one possible charge and the state lacked enough evidence on another possible charge. Milanese said Saturday the way the investigation ended is upsetting and unfair because the state has not cleared him of wrongdoing. "The state is so one-sided," Milanese said after Mass. "This whole thing is one-sided. I said to one of the investigators, What happened to innocent until proven guilty?"' Milanese said he took a polygraph test in May regarding the allegations. He passed, he said. The congregation stood and applauded as Milanese entered the sanctuary Saturday at the start of Mass. Then the Rev. Peter Routhier of St. Monica's parish in Barre read a letter Bishop Kenneth A. Angell wrote to the Randolph congregation. Milanese's administrative leave was not a presumption of guilt, Angell wrote. When the state's investigation "concluded that the allegation was not substantiated," Angell reinstated Milanese, the bishop wrote. Angell plans to attend Mass in Randolph on Nov. 17 to show his support for Milanese. The parishioners in Randolph were quick to come to their priest's defense. "It was a backhanded ending to the whole thing," parishioner David Goldsworthy said of the state's September announcement about Milanese. "I wish they could have worded it in a different way that didn't sound like they presumed his guilt." Saturday, about 60 people filled the small white church on a hill overlooking downtown Randolph. The number of people who attended the 4 p.m. Mass was slightly above normal, Goldsworthy said. The congregation came to support their priest, members said. "We're just thrilled," said Joan Goldsworthy, David's wife. "It's like the end of a nightmare. He's one of the best people I've ever known." "I think Father John is a tremendous leader in the community," said Stephen Webster, a Protestant who came to Mass to show his support for Milanese. "He's a humble man. He's been through a trying time." The priest said the weight of the investigation sometimes felt like too much to bear. There were times during these five long months that seemed like five years," he said in his sermon. "There were times I begged God to take the cross from me." Milanese will work part time at the parish until December, when he'll resume full-time duties, he said. When Milanese was reinstated, Angell gave him the option to be transferred to another parish, the priest said. That could have provided him a fresh start elsewhere, Milanese said, but would have been unfair to his Randolph congregation. "I felt I was ripped out of here," he said. "I felt these people had suffered an awful lot, and not to come back there would have been no closure, no healing."
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