Can you guess what these persecuted priests all have in common?
A strange phenomenon is occurring in many dioceses throughout North America. Some priests are beginning to courageously speak-out against evils in society with new boldness and passion, almost as if someone’s (eternal) life depends upon it. One would expect these faithful priests to be persecuted by the purveyors of evil, which certainly happens with some frequency. However, you might be surprised to learn the greatest threat to these priests come from their own bishops.
A column by Mary Ann Kreitzer describes the problem facing orthodox priests in the United States:
How do bad bishops punish good priests? Let us count the ways: exile, silencing, mandatory evaluation at pseudo-psychiatric facilities like St. Luke’s, frequent reassignment, making them permanent parochial vicars with no hope of becoming pastors, marginalization, driving them out (to other dioceses or the military vicariate), whispering campaigns designating them “mentally unstable” or “unfit for ministry,” etc. The ultimate punishment, the bishop’s sword of Damocles, so to speak, is suspension. It hangs over the head of a good priest who knows his “spiritual father” will use it. How many good priests hear variations of the threat, “You have no idea what I can do to you!” But the good priests do know. They’ve seen the sword fall on their brothers.
We have reported on the cases of eight individual priests who have been persecuted by their bishops over the course of the past two years. Our list is by no means comprehensive as there are many additional priests who being privately persecuted by their bishops. Here’s a brief rundown of the stories we have reported.
| Priest | Description | Superior |
|---|---|---|
 Fr. Robert Altier | Publicly admonished by his bishop for his viral homily, “.Coronavirus - The Truth Revealed.” | Archbishop Bernard Hebda Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis 651.291.4400 archbishop@archspm.org |
 Fr. James Altman | Publicly rebuked by his bishop and forbidden from broadcasting his homilies after he issued he viral video "You Cannot be a Faithful Catholic and a Democrat." | Bishop William Callahan Diocese of La Crosse 608.788.7700 dbrannon@diolc.org |
 Fr. Mark Goring | Told to stop speaking out by an unnamed superior about the Church’s sexual-abuse scandal. Goring issued an appeal to Pope Francis for permission to keep talking about the crisis. | Archbishop Terrence Prendergast Archdiocese of Ottawa-Cornwall 613.738.5025 Arch@archottawa.ca |
 Fr. Daniel Nolan | Publicly humiliated by his superiors who stated they were “evaluating” Fr. Nolan after an off-handed comment about face masks during a catechesis lecture. | Father Father Michael Stinson Fraternity of St. Peter, North American District 570.842.4000 |
 Fr. Paul Kalchik | Forced to flee when his bishop ordered him to be removed from his parish for allowing his parishioners to burn a rainbow banner found in the parish. | Cardinal Blasé Cupich Archdiocese of Chicago 312.751.8200 bcupich@archchicago.org |
 Fr. James Parker | Kicked to the curb by his bishop for encouraging his parishioners to inform themselves before making a decision on vaccination. | Bishop David Malloy Diocese of Rockford 815.399.4300 TWhite@RockfordDiocese.org |
 Fr. Eduard Perrone | Falsely accused of sexual abuse and removed from his parish. Has sued his diocese for defamation. | Archbishop Allen Vigneron Archdiocese of Detroit 313.237.5800 vigneron.allen@aod.org |
 Fr. Theodore Rothrock | Removed from his parish after issuing a column in his parish bulletin critical of Black Lives Matter. | Bishop Timothy Doherty Diocese of Lafayette, IN 765.742.0275 bishop@dol-in.org |
 Fr. Mark White | Silenced and removed from his parish for speaking out on the handling of the sexual abuse scandal by the Church. | Bishop Barry Knestout Diocese of Richmond 804.359.5661 bishop@richmonddiocese.org |
So what’s the one thing all these persecuted priests have in common? They have an Orthodox interpretation of the Catholic faith. This makes them especially reprehensible to liberal ‘Catholics’ who cannot bear to hear the truths of the faith spoken with clarity and boldness. It’s simply amazing that faithful priests like these men seem to be always silenced by their bishops, while dissident Judases like Fr. James Martin are allowed to roam the country spewing their heresies to anyone who will listen.
Please contact the bishops of these persecuted priests and express your opinion regarding the actions the bishop has taken against them. Please also be sure to pray for our persecuted priests and ask God to raise-up more clerics who will courageously proclaim the Truths of the Holy Catholic Church for the salvation of souls.