Calgary Parish Split As Pedophile Priest Revealed
Forgiveness advised
By Robert Remington
Originally published at The National Post Online, with files from the Calgary Herald and Global TV, February 4, 2002
CALGARY — Parishioners at a Catholic church yesterday were asked to forgive a pedophile priest hired six months ago without their knowledge.
"As you reflect on this, I ask that you do so in a manner that is not purely emotional but in a spirit of prayer and openness to the gospel message of Jesus," Father Keith Sorge told the congregation attending Mass at St. Patrick's Church.
Parishioners discovered from weekend media reports that James Kneale, hired as a priest at St. Patrick's last fall, is a convicted pedophile.
Father Kneale, 46, was recognized by a parishioner as the same man who admitted in court to having performed oral sex on a 16-year-old male in the Holy Rosary rectory in Thorald, Ont., in 1985.
Father Kneale was charged in 1997 with one count of indecent assault and five counts of sexual assault on offences alleged to have occurred between 1982 and 1985 on two males, one of them a minor. At trial in 1999, the Crown withdrew five of the charges after Father Kneale agreed to plead guilty to one count of sexual assault. He served a nine-month conditional sentence and 18 months probation.
Following seven months in treatment at Southdown Institute in Aurora, Ont., Father Kneale contacted Calgary's Catholic Bishop, Fred Henry, for a job last spring. Bishop Henry is on the board of directors of Southdown.
"He was completely upfront and straightforward with [Bishop Henry] as to his reason for making this request," Father Sorge told parishioners.
"After consulting Father Jim's bishop and studying the reports from Southdown, Bishop Henry felt there was reason to give him a second chance."
Reaction from the parish was mixed.
"Just because he's a priest, I don't know if there should be any special circumstances. I think the parish and the diocese should have made it known to us," parishioner Sharon Herauf told Global TV.
"Let he who is without sin throw the first stone," said another parishioner, who declined to be identified.
One woman said she was "really hurt" by the hiring, but parishioners Todd and Saveria Bernard called Father Kneale a superb priest and would not judge him by his past.
Outside the church, the lobby group Mad Mothers Against Pedophiles carried placards reading "Justice for Children."
"There's a difference between forgiveness and putting a person in a position of trust and moral authority," Linda Pushor, the group's interim president, told Global. The organization says it will approach Dave Hancock, Alberta's Minister of Justice, about the matter.
Father Kneale is on holiday in Europe, and Bishop Henry is also away and unavailable, Father Sorge said.
During sentencing, court heard that Father Kneale was sexually attracted to teenage boys and was assessed as being immature—preferring to associate with teenagers rather than adults as friends.
Father Sorge says he does not regret the decision to hire Father Kneale.
"Many people go around with bracelets or medallions inscribed with the initials 'WWJD—What would Jesus Do?' I had to ask myself that question, I'm sure [Bishop Henry] did and hopefully you will find it in your hearts to do the same," Father Sorge told Mass-goers.
Father Alphonese de Valk, editor of Catholic Insight magazine, said Father Kneale never should have been hired, calling the decision "disastrous." He said Bishop Henry owes an explanation to parishioners.
Hugo Meynell, a retired religious studies professor at the University of Calgary and a practising Catholic, also disagrees with Father Kneale's hiring.
"What tends to happen is the priests who are caught fooling about with altar boys tend to be sent to a facility for a short time and then sent to another parish. There's a real epidemic of this," he said.
