Update on Fr. John Corapi

[thereselittleflower]

Well then the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity is guilty of calumny too since it is just a summary basically of their official statement from their site: link

It seems SOLT was not going to stay quiet while John Corapi lied about everything and did his black sheep dog thing. So they went public with their evidence and investigation to prevent him from further misleading the faithful.

That is not calumny or detraction. It is the revealing of information because he is lying and misleading the faithful about the investigation and what happened. His order has called him to obedience in accordance with his vows. He can choose what to do now. It is not the first call to obedience...but it is the public one. It is not detraction to post what his order has made public so the faithful are no longer deceived.

Press Release Concerning Fr John Corapi from SOLT Regional Priest Servant


July 5, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

From: Rev. Gerard Sheehan, SOLT Regional Priest Servant Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Robstown, Texas

Fr. John A. Corapi submitted his resignation from the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity ("SOLT") early in June. SOLT is a Society of Apostolic Life of Diocesan Right with its regional office in Robstown, Texas.

While SOLT does not typically comment publicly on personnel matters, it recognizes that Fr. John Corapi, through his ministry, has inspired thousands of faithful Catholics, many of whom continue to express their support of him. SOLT also recognizes that Fr. Corapi is now misleading these individuals through his false statements and characterizations. It is for these Catholics that SOLT, by means of this announcement, seeks to set the record straight.

A woman, well known to Fr. John Corapi, mailed SOLT a signed letter detailing allegations of Fr. Corapi's sexual activity with adult women, abuse of alcohol and drugs, improper sacramental practices, violation of his promise of poverty, and other wrongdoing.

After receiving the allegation, SOLT formed a three person fact-finding team to ensure that it handled this matter in accordance with canonical norms. The team included a priest-canonist, a psychiatrist, and a lawyer. Two were members of religious orders, and one was a lay Catholic. Two were men, and one was a woman. All three have national reputations and substantial experience in ecclesiastical processes related to priest disciplinary issues.

As the Society was engaging this team, Fr. Corapi filed a civil lawsuit against his principal accuser. He contended that she had defamed him and breached her contract. The contract, according to Corapi's lawsuit, contained a provision binding the woman to silence about him. He offered the woman $100,000 to enter this agreement.

SOLT's fact-finding team subsequently learned that Fr. Corapi may have negotiated contracts with other key witnesses that precluded them from speaking with SOLT's fact-finding team. Many of these witnesses likely had key information about the accusations being investigated and declined to answer questions and provide documents.

When the fact-finding team asked Fr. Corapi to dismiss the lawsuit, to forbear from foreclosing his mortgage, and to release her and other individuals from their contractual obligations to remain silent about him, he refused to do so and, through his canonical advocate, stated: "It is not possible for Father Corapi to answer the Commission's questions at this time."

SOLT's fact-finding team has acquired information from Fr. Corapi's e-mails, various witnesses, and public sources that, together, state that, during his years of public ministry:

He did have sexual relations and years of cohabitation (in California and Montana) with a woman known to him, when the relationship began, as a prostitute; He repeatedly abused alcohol and drugs; He has recently engaged in sexting activity with one or more women in Montana; He holds legal title to over $1 million in real estate, numerous luxury vehicles, motorcycles, an ATV, a boat dock, and several motor boats, which is a serious violation of his promise of poverty as a perpetually professed member of the Society.

SOLT has contemporaneously with the issuance of this press release directed Fr. John Corapi, under obedience, to return home to the Society’s regional office and take up residence there. It has also ordered him, again under obedience, to dismiss the lawsuit he has filed against his accuser.

SOLT's prior direction to Fr. John Corapi not to engage in any preaching or teaching, the celebration of the sacraments or other public ministry continues. Catholics should understand that SOLT does not consider Fr. John Corapi as fit for ministry.

Father Sheehan will not be available for comments as he is attending the SOLT General Chapter from July 5-23.
​

I have tears welling up in my eyes. He was a part of my journey of conversion to Catholicism.

I never thought I would see such a day . . . . . .


We truly do not know those we only know in such a superficial way, regardless of how close the TV and media bring them to us. . . .


May he find grace to obey his order . . . .

 

[thereselittleflower]

Doesn't tell me anything and I seen here in this thread where it was taken down because it was not verifiable. They are trying to railroad him



Thank you

He is guilty of the accusations, he has attacked the Church, he is guilty of severely breaking his vow of proverty, he tried to buy off his acusers at $100,000 a pop, . . .. and he is being railroaded. . . . yeah . . . right . .. . .

He is the one who has broken trust and the Church is the guilty party?

May I suggest you stop before you find yourself in an deep hole of your own making?

 

[thereselittleflower]

Well I still want to hear from Fr. Corapi first I just don't believe them right now and I still think he is being railroaded

Why would you expect to h ear truth from someone who lies?

Beware of elevating a mere human onto such a high pedestal .. . . the fall is quite hard and destructive.

 

[thereselittleflower]

Why not?

Because the "cult of personality" blinds the followers of any personality to any possible wrong doing by the personality in question, and makes the personality the ultimate authority and truth giver.

This is why someone like this is so dangerous to the sheep . . such a one is not a defender of sheep, but one who, if left unchecked, could cause great damage.

 

[thereselittleflower]

Not me. I am a sheep of Christ

If you are not Catholic you are not allowed to debate us here.

If you are, then what David said to you is absolutely true.

If obedience to the Bishops of the Church is something you reject, then no wonder you support Fr Corapi. I am sorry to see it appears you have become entangled in his net of deception.

 

[thereselittleflower]

It seems to me that SOLT is somewhat culpable in all this mess. Corapi claimed to be a fully professed priest with SOLT. He obviously was exempt from the vow of poverty & he was allowed to live independently. I thought this was a society of men who lived together as community. To hold each other accountable & work under supervision. This obviously was not the case with Corapi. Why? Does this not also put a somewhat negative light on SOLT also?

The wheels of the Church turn slowly . . . we don't have all the facts of what the SOLT tried to do in the past or how Corapi has disobeyed his superiors in the past as well .. I would not rush to judgement. Has there been anyone else with such a media following and power who has done as he has done? There is probably quite a bit of uncharted water here.

 

[Virgil the Roman]

Prayer for Fr John.

 

[Tigg]

I have tears welling up in my eyes. He was a part of my journey of conversion to Catholicism.

I never thought I would see such a day . . . . . .


We truly do not know those we only know in such a superficial way, regardless of how close the TV and media bring them to us. . . .


May he find grace to obey his order . . . .

Prayers for all who have been hurt by this. May God bless us all.

 

[Davidnic]

For those who were led by Corapi's preaching to the Church, remember he is but a pencil in the hand of God and it was God who wrote on your hearts the love letter to come to Him. Corapi was an unworthy, as are we all, deliverer of a message that is not his own.

It was the truth of the message which is perfect, not the voice of the man who is flawed...that really spoke to your heart.

We are all, as Mother Teresa asked us to be, pencils in the hand of God. But we are pencils that, with our free will, can choose the hand that uses us. We offer our skills to either God or to sin and the temptations of the enemy. And a pencil that is used by the hand of God can, if it believes the glory of the message to be his own, seek later to be the implement of the enemy.

John Corapi now leads people away from the Church through pride and obstinate denial. He was privileged to be used by our Blessed and most wonderful Lord to convey His message. But the glory of that message, the power of it...he thought his own and gave into the sin that plagues all of us.

Do not let his fall and sin break you from the Truth of the message he proclaimed. The man is not the message...the only man that is the message is Christ...the Truth Itself made flesh.

We free willed pencils can only produce works of merit through Him. And we can choose who uses us by handing our will to He who is perfect.

If Corapi led you to Christ then remain in Christ. Remember Paul told his followers who argued if they "belonged" to Paul, Apollos or Cephas based on who gave them the good new...He told them they belonged to Christ.

You do not belong to John Corapi and his flaws and weaknesses, that we all have.
You belong to Christ and His perfection.

 

[thereselittleflower]

For those who were led by Corapi's preaching to the Church, remember he is but a pencil in the hand of God and it was God who wrote on your hearts the love letter to come to Him. Corapi was an unworthy, as are we all, deliverer of a message that is not his own.

It was the truth of the message which is perfect, not the voice of the man who is flawed...that really spoke to your heart.

We are all, as Mother Teresa asked us to be, pencils in the hand of God. But we are pencils that, with our free will, can choose the hand that uses us. We offer our skills to either God or to sin and the temptations of the enemy. And a pencil that is used by the hand of God can, if it believes the glory of the message to be his own, seek later to be the implement of the enemy.

John Corapi now leads people away from the Church through pride and obstinate denial. He was privileged to be used by our Blessed and most wonderful Lord to convey His message. But the glory of that message, the power of it...he thought his own and gave into the sin that plagues all of us.

Do not let his fall and sin break you from the Truth of the message he proclaimed. The man is not the message...the only man that is the message is Christ...the Truth Itself made flesh.

We free willed pencils can only produce works of merit through Him. And we can choose who uses us by handing our will to He who is perfect.

If Corapi led you to Christ then remain in Christ. Remember Paul told his followers who argued if they "belonged" to Paul, Apollos or Cephas based on who gave them the good new...He told them they belonged to Christ.

You do not belong to John Corapi and his flaws and weaknesses, that we all have.
You belong to Christ and His perfection.

Amen.

 

[servant of Merciful Love]

For those who were led by Corapi's preaching to the Church, remember he is but a pencil in the hand of God and it was God who wrote on your hearts the love letter to come to Him. Corapi was an unworthy, as are we all, deliverer of a message that is not his own.

It was the truth of the message which is perfect, not the voice of the man who is flawed...that really spoke to your heart.

We are all, as Mother Teresa asked us to be, pencils in the hand of God. But we are pencils that, with our free will, can choose the hand that uses us. We offer our skills to either God or to sin and the temptations of the enemy. And a pencil that is used by the hand of God can, if it believes the glory of the message to be his own, seek later to be the implement of the enemy.

John Corapi now leads people away from the Church through pride and obstinate denial. He was privileged to be used by our Blessed and most wonderful Lord to convey His message. But the glory of that message, the power of it...he thought his own and gave into the sin that plagues all of us.

Do not let his fall and sin break you from the Truth of the message he proclaimed. The man is not the message...the only man that is the message is Christ...the Truth Itself made flesh.

We free willed pencils can only produce works of merit through Him. And we can choose who uses us by handing our will to He who is perfect.

If Corapi led you to Christ then remain in Christ. Remember Paul told his followers who argued if they "belonged" to Paul, Apollos or Cephas based on who gave them the good new...He told them they belonged to Christ.

You do not belong to John Corapi and his flaws and weaknesses, that we all have.
You belong to Christ and His perfection.

 

[isshinwhat]

Prayer for Fr John.

Amen. Corruptio optimi pessima... Hopefully the truth will come out soon and the scandal minimized.

 

[Michie]

New: PDF of Fr. Corapi's lawsuit against his accuser...

Many people have understandably been curious as to what the lawsuit says, and it is a matter of public record that can serve to shed light on the case. (In particular, it tells Fr. Corapi's side of the story via his lawyers.) Although I have unredacted copies of the pleadings in the case, I am including one here that omits the name of.

 

[Sonny1954]

The Society of the Lady of the Most Holy Trinity, John Corapi's former order, has released the findings into Mr. Corapi's financial and personal dealings. It reads, in part, the John Corapi:

-- "Did have sexual relations and years of cohabitation (in California and Montana) with a woman known to him, when the relationship began, as a prostitute."
-- "Repeatedly abused alcohol and drugs."
-- "Has recently engaged in sexting activity with one or more women in Montana."
-- "Holds legal title to over $1 million in real estate, numerous luxury vehicles, motorcycles, an ATV, a boat dock and several motor boats, which is a serious violation of his promise of poverty as a perpetually professed member of this society."

 

[MikeK]

In the interest of charity, I'm going to assume that this is all an honest mistake. I suspect that Father Corapi had at one time been told to mold himself after Bishop Fulton Sheen, but due to poor record-keeping, Father Corapi's busy schedule, and the fog of war, there came to be some confusion and Father Corapi ended up following the example of Charlie Sheen instead. I'm not the most detail oriented guy either, I could see how that could happen.

 

[Nietzscheiswrong]

If the bishops were all so vigilant like in this case as in child abuse ones, there wouldn't be any child abuse cases in the first place.

But there are. Double standard and dual-speed? Schyzophrenia (two opposite ways of dealing with the same problem i.e. scandals in the church.)?

 

[Sonny1954]

I doubt that any group of powerful people--bishops, congressmen, senator, businessmen -- are vigilant about policing themselves. It seems to not be a part of human nature. The Bishops are unique, however, in that they are answerable to no one.

As for John Corapi, he joins the lengthening list of "men of the cloth" who shout about their own holiness, condemn the evil in society, and indulge in that evil privately: Jimmy Swaggart...Jim Baker...Robert Tilton. They forget that humility is a virtue and that they are to be only the conduits of Divine power, not the originators of their own.

 

[Virgil the Roman]

"They forget that humility is a virtue and that they are to be only the conduits of Divine power, not the originators of their own."​

That encapsulates and sums up the issue rather well.

 

[FullyMT]

I doubt that any group of powerful people--bishops, congressmen, senator, businessmen -- are vigilant about policing themselves. It seems to not be a part of human nature. The Bishops are unique, however, in that they are answerable to no one.

As for John Corapi, he joins the lengthening list of "men of the cloth" who shout about their own holiness, condemn the evil in society, and indulge in that evil privately: Jimmy Swaggart...Jim Baker...Robert Tilton. They forget that humility is a virtue and that they are to be only the conduits of Divine power, not the originators of their own.

Not entirely true. Bishops are answerable to the Vatican congregations and offices. Essentially, they are answerable to each other. Yes, there is room for difference in how things are run, but ultimately the systems should be somewhat similar.

For those who were led by Corapi's preaching to the Church, remember he is but a pencil in the hand of God and it was God who wrote on your hearts the love letter to come to Him. Corapi was an unworthy, as are we all, deliverer of a message that is not his own.

As are we all!

 

[judechild]

But there are. Double standard and dual-speed? Schyzophrenia (two opposite ways of dealing with the same problem i.e. scandals in the church.)?

Neither: a change in the penal norms. A policy of zero-tolerance on any infaction against chastity. The number of allegations that have been brought forward of abuse that has happened in the last decade is minute.

In Fr. Corapi's case, though, I'm worried about how he was able to hold his double-life a secret for so long. If a person who was so unfit for ministry is given so little supervision for so long... that is the breading ground for scandal. The Corapi case is similar to the Marciel case.