Thinking about whether or not he actually believes in hell

Archbishop John Nienstedt was forced to resign his position in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis this past June. The move came a little over a week after criminal charges were filed against the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

“Today we are alleging a disturbing institutional and systemic pattern of behavior committed by the highest levels of leadership of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis over the course of decades,” said Ramsey County Attorney John Choi. Choi called the facts of the case “appalling.” He said his office was both filing criminal charges and taking civil action because of the archdiocese’s failure to protect the boys despite “numerous and repeated reports of troubling conduct by Curtis Wehmeyer.”

John Nienstedt by most accounts did nothing to protect the flock, and more specifically the youngest of his flock, from sexual predators. A couple of weeks ago, Nienstedt showed up under the Diocese of Kalamazoo to help lead three masses at St. Philip Catholic Church.

When Archbishop John Nienstedt celebrated three Masses at St. Philip Catholic Church this weekend, he was merely helping out his old friend Fr. John Fleckenstein, who is ill. He plans to continue to help as needed for about a six months. In the eyes of the Diocese of Kalamazoo, it's just a matter of old friends who made an arrangement between themselves in a way that does not violate any rule of the Diocese, a spokesperson said.

[emphasis is me grinding my teeth]

The people of Battle Creek, Michigan are not having it. They are justifiably furious at the complete pigheadedness of their Catholic leadership to allow something so grotesque to happen. Especially after Nienstedt’s and the Church’s clear PR campaign to allow him to substitute in for the sick Fleckenstein.

This week, those attending Mass in Battle Creek either heard from him from the pulpit, or read in a packet handed out after Mass, Nienstedt's characterization of media reports as "misinformation," and "false allegations made made over two years ago that have again resurfaced." He said in the letter to parishioners that he has not been sued, nor have any legal charges been made against him, and that he resigned as archbishop in Minneapolis and St. Paul "in order for that local church to have a new beginning, not because I had done anything wrong."

Turns out Nienstedt will have to skulk away once again with his bloody hands clutched around his ego. Of course, Nienstedt wasn’t allowed to address the offended parishioners himself, that was left up to his good buddy Fleckenstein, who wrote this letter, dated January 21, 2016:

I wish to inform you that Archbishop John Nienstedt has decided to discontinue his pastoral assistance for St. Philip Parish, effective immediately. After discussions with the Archbishop conveying the expressed concerns by the faithful people of our community, he offered to withdraw from the diocese and I agreed. Archbishop Nienstedt has a deep concern for the Church, and in light of the unintended discord that his presence was causing, he decided that this would be the best course of action so the Church can remain focused on its mission. At the same time, the Archbishop shared with me the deep gratitude he has for the hospitality he received from so many of our parishioners. A very regrettable circumstance of Archbishop Nienstedt’s presence within our community has been anger and fear. I’m proud of the good works of our parishes and our Catholic schools as well as our valuable place in our community. I wish for us to continue growing and striving. My hope is that we can move forward together. I wish Archbishop Nienstedt well and I know many of you do as well. In this Jubilee Year of Mercy, as called for by Pope Francis, I pray we may find peace, support, and healing for ourselves and with each other, and that we continue to care for all people with charity.

[bold is my emphasis]

Did he “offer” it? Maybe as parishioner Samantha Pearl told the Battle Creek Enquirer:

"As anybody would know, I strongly believe it was the right thing to happen," Pearl said. "I was honestly a little heartbroken that the church should have to be pushed to make that decision, but I'm relieved that they did and my hope is that we can now move forward in rebuilding the trust and I know that's the desire of the pastoral leadership as well."

Unfortunately the Rev. Paul J. Bradley, Bishop of Kalamazoo wrote this longer letter that clearly missed the fundamental point.

While I made every effort to ensure that there were no canonical restrictions regarding the exercise of Archbishop Niendstedt’s priestly ministry at St. Philip Parish, I should have foreseen the full impact and strong emotional reaction to his presence in the Diocese.

First things first: It’s not an emotional reaction to not want a man who failed to protect, and willfully ignored, the child-molesting and abuse going on during his watch, to be your spiritual guide. No canonical restrictions? You are either admitting that the Catholic Church has a canonical attitude towards allowing children to be sexually abused or you’re hiding behind the Church to justify your terrible judgement or you’re half-assedly taking the fall for your higher ups or you’re an idiot. Those are the only options.

You can watch the first part of Nienstedt’s 2014 deposition on the molestation scandal below the fold.