Since the “Meet the Monks” section [ View ] was launched in May, the 721 monk profiles have been viewed a total of 64,478 times.

The most “popular” monks in June and July:

1. Fr. Francisco Schulte (1479 Views)
2. Fr. Thomas Gillespie (1468)
3. Fr. Tom Andert (1367)

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Since the new “Meet the Monks” section [ Go There ] was launched earlier this month, visitors have viewed the 720 monk profiles a total of 21,563 times.

The most “popular” monks:

1. Br. Isaac Connolly (528 Views)
2. Fr. Michael Bik (476 Views)

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For decades, a group of monks at St. John’s Abbey operated a sex abuse ring. Boys as young as 9 were victimized, as were teenage boys and girls. But most of the victims were novice monks – high school and college graduates who were drawn to the discipline of monastic life, which consists of prayer, study, teaching and living in a religious community of like-minded men. (more…)

Meet the Monks at St. John’s Abbey
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According to multiple sources, St. John’s Abbey’s offending monks:

- Br. Jim Phillips < - Sodomy; At least two victims
- Br. Andre Bennett <- Died 2007
- Fr. Cosmas Dahlheimer <- Died 2002
- Fr. Richard Eckroth
- Fr. John Eidenschink <- Died 2004
- Fr. Thomas Gillespie
- Fr. Brennan Maiers
- Fr. Finian McDonald
- Fr. Dunstan Moorse <- At least nine victims
- Fr. Allen Tarlton
- Br. Isaac Connelly
- Fr. Michael Bik
- Fr. Bruce Wollmering <- Died 2009
- Fr. Robert Blumeyer <- Died 1983
- Br. John Kelly <- In Twin Cities
- Fr. Francis Hoefgen <- In Twin Cities
- Fr. Francisco Schulte <- Fled to Rome in 1987 following abuse allegations. Taken off of restriction by Abbot John Klassen in 2003.
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St. John’s Abbey Benedictine establishment at Collegeville, MN, the largest Benedictine monastery in the western world, adjacent to St. John’s University and St. John’s Preparatory School. At least 14 of the abbey’s nearly 200 monks have been credibly accused of sexual misconduct.
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This letter was written September 30, 2007 to Lee Hanley, a public relations person at St. John’s and an old friend. I had received numerous complaints about my alma mater from around the country. I wanted it to get to the current Abbot who had appeared to be dedicated to improving monastic behavior by setting up an External Review Board to work with the monastery to help young people be safe. I hoped it might stave off some problems. It did not. This and the following article is a personal dialogue.

From: http://www.richardsipe.com/Dialogue/Dialogue-15-2007-09-30.html
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Accused clergy remain at St. John’s Abbey, schools Abbot releases information to end ‘culture of secrecy’ that aids abuse
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A Minneapolis man who accuses St. John’s Abbey of “harboring pedophiles” has filed a court action demanding the removal of 11 monks and priests from St. John’s property.
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COLLEGEVILLE — He’s the man they call on to get the job done whether on the farm, with soon-to-be monks, in the chemistry department or now as head of the St. John’s monastery.
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This letter responds to your article “Scandal at the abbey” (NCR, Dec. 13). I am a brother to Benedictine Fr. Richard Eckroth, who received the most coverage of 11 monks accused of sexual abuse in your article. He is one of two at St. John’s Abbey who deny guilt. In its concentration of attention on those who deny charges, your report echoes the local print and broadcast media. Does any newsperson ever consider that some accused priests might actually be innocent? The tradition of “innocent until proven guilty” which, I hope, still pervades American justice, certainly does not apply to media reporting on this subject.
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* The two articles that appeared in recent issues reporting on the response of St. John’s Abbey to allegations of sexual abuse were generally accurate and fair (NCR, Dec. 13 and 27). However, in an accompanying article headlined “Father is `lion at the gate’ pressing case against priest,” a statement is made about one of our monks that calls for clarification.
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Ed Vessel said he was “disinvited” to the Oct. 1 news conference at which St. John’s Abbey and Jeffrey Anderson, attorney for victims of sexual abuse by abbey monks, jointly announced a broad financial settlement of claims against the abbey.
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Its reputation for learning and liturgy, publishing and holiness, ecumenism and even bread-making are legendary and have grown over its 146-year existence, making St. John’s Abbey here — with its impressive abbey church and signature bell tower — a jewel in the Minnesota prairie landscape.
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Collegeville – An apology, validation and a promise to ensure sexual abuse won’t happen to another child or adult. These, for many survivors of clergy sexual abuse, are far more important than financial settlement.
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As allegations of sex abuse and coverup in the Catholic Church shook the nation this year, St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Minn., confronted its own dark past. Former students came forward, some for the first time, to talk about what went on behind the Pine Curtain, the rows of conifers that surround the campus. Reporters Paul McEnroe and Pam Louwagie spent several months investigating reports of a sexual subculture that flourished there for decades.
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From baptism to first communion to weddings, Ray and Arlene Vogel marked their family’s milestones through their faith.

It defined the life they created in the house across the street from St. Augustine’s Catholic Church in St. Cloud.
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Under St. John’s policy, monks on restriction are to have no pastoral or teaching duties or unsupervised social contact with young people. They are not allowed to work in the prep school or university, use most campus facilities, or serve in parishes. They may not travel without permission. Some have been allowed limited travel.
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Declaring themselves victims of sexual abuse and claiming that St. John’s Abbey has covered up such abuse for decades, two former prep school students on Thursday sued the abbey and two priests already living under restrictions because of sexual misconduct.
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St. John’s Abbey officials have confirmed that a 14th member has been put on restrictions after being accused of sexual misconduct.
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Sins of a Father: ‘Sauna Kids’ Abuse; a Remote Retreat in Minnesota Allegedly Was Turned into a Sexual Playhouse by a Catholic Monk Who Has Been Accused of Repeatedly Molesting Young Boys and Girls.
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St. John’s Abbey was told in the late 1980s that the Rev. Richard Eckroth had allegedly sexually abused a boy years earlier.
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Legal experts say there is little that the victims can do in the wake of accusations of sex abuse at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville. Dozens of people have come forward over the years alleging sexual abuse by monks from the central Minnesota abbey, but Minnesota’s statute of limitations keeps cases of sexual abuse out of the courts once the victim turns 25. Some victims say if the statute of limitations doesn’t change, they’ll never see justice or compensation. Officials at St. John’s Abbey say they prefer to keep the cases out of court, saying a trial hurts those involved a second time.
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The Rev. Richard Eckroth –Continues to use abbey cabin on Swenson Lake near Bemidji; traveled to St. John’s mission, St. Augustine Abbey in Nassau, Bahamas, summer 1997 for the ceremony when a St. John’s priest was named prior, the position of top leadership at the mission abbey.
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The monks of Saint John’s Abbey are vowed to mutual respect between persons and a celibate way of life. We regard sexual abuse or sexual exploitation by a member of our community to be morally reprehensible. We are profoundly sorry for the pain that has been caused by those monks of our community who have not been faithful to their vows and we commit ourselves to care for those who have been the victims of such abuse.
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