French priest-therapist removed from ministry for alleged sexual abuse

Msgr. Tony Anatrella is accused of having practiced 'body therapy' in order to 'heal' homosexuality and of having been involved in sexual abuse

Msgr. Tony Anatrella, a priest and psychoanalyst specializes in social psychiatry, in Paris on Jan. 10, 1996. He has been prohibited from pastoral ministry on suspicion of sexual abuse. (Photo by Stéphane Ouzounoff//CIRIC)

The French Catholic Church has announced sanctions against Msgr. Tony Anatrella, who has been the subject of accusations by his former patients for more than 15 years.

Msgr. Anatrella, 77, is accused of having practiced "body therapy" in order to "heal" homosexuality and of having been involved in sexual abuse.

On the basis of information gathered during a preliminary investigation, Archbishop Michel Aupetit of Paris has now ruled that "no priestly ministry will henceforth be granted to him," the archdiocese told La Croix.

Archbishop Aupetit also "ordered (him) not to hear the confessions of the faithful, to give up the practice of spiritual direction and accompaniment and to refrain from making any public pronouncements without his (the archbishop's) agreement."

Msgr. Anatrella must also cease "all therapeutic activity," as previously ordered by the late Cardinal André Vingt-Trois of Paris.

Reprimand

This amounts to a "reprimand," a canonical sanction invoked when there is a decision not to proceed with a trial but where "after investigation, grave suspicion of having committed has fallen" on the person concerned.

According to Canon 1339 §2 of the Code of Canon Law, the bishop of the diocese may also "rebuke a person whose behavior causes scandal or a grave disturbance of order, in a manner accommodated to the special conditions of the person and the deed."

These sanctions were announced to the complainants on July 3 by Auxiliary Bishop Éric Marie de Moulins d'Amieu de Beaufort of Paris, who had at the request of Cardinal Vingt-Trois heard the alleged victims as part of the work of a commission established in 2016.

"I am satisfied; it is a courageous decision, and for us, it is the end of several very complicated years," one of the complainants told La Croix.

"There is a kind of relief even though much is still to be said about the way in which victims have been received and listened to," he said, lamenting the lack of any "compensation for the victims."

The latter had "symbolically" requested the reimbursement of the cost of years of therapy with Msgr. Anatrella, which amounted to around 50,000 euros in total for all his accusers.

A long affair

Msgr. Anatrella has always denied the allegations.

After examining reports from three alleged victims, civil justice authorities closed the file on the matter in 2007.

In two instances the alleged events took place prior to the limitation period for legal action. In the third case, Paris prosecutors concluded that "elements constitutive of an offense had not been fulfilled."

Meanwhile, Msgr. Anatrella lodged a complaint for slander and defamation. His lawyer at the time blamed a "settling of scores" against him because of his public stance against homosexuality. He was regularly consulted by various Vatican offices and played a major role in drafting an instruction the Congregation for Catholic Education issued in 2005 that warns against admitting men with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" to the seminary.

New alleged victims of Anatrella came forward in 2016, invoking the church's justice system. They were encouraged by claims that followed legal action against Father Bernard Preynat of Lyon, who was accused of sexually abusing several boy scouts years ago.

The Archdiocese of Paris had also envisaged launching a canonical trial for Msgr. Anatrella.

However, the Holy See refused to waive the limitation period for such actions (since no investigation had begun). As a result, a preliminary investigation of the alleged facts was launched in October 2017 and the findings presented to Archbishop Aupetit in mid-May.

Since practicing as a therapist, Msgr. Anatrella had not been in a pastoral assignment for many years.