A year after son’s suicide, parents seek change at St. John’s

Posted on December 18, 2015
Posted in John Klassen, Tom Andert

(MPR) It’s been a year since Ben Spanier took his life. His parents say his problems began 20 years earlier, when he was a student at St. John’s Prep in Collegeville. They say their son wasn’t the same after he began spending time with the Rev. Tom Andert, a prominent priest who was placed on leave earlier this year for a separate allegation of sexual misconduct.

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Monks Who Have Passed

Posted on December 14, 2015
Posted in Meet the Monks

Below is a list of men who died while still professed members of Saint John’s Abbey.

Most Recent:

Brother Nicholas Claude Thelen (June 27, 2015)
Father Barnabas Laubach (June 23, 2015)
Father Richard William Eckroth (May 24, 2015)

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We must share concern for all innocent people victimized by abusers or accusers

Posted on December 11, 2015
Posted in Tim Backous, William C. Graham
[Webmaster’s Note: This opinion piece was written for the Duluth News Tribune by The Rev. William C. Graham, a close friend and partner of Father Timothy Backous, OSB.]

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Priests Files (PDFs) from the November 2015 File Release

Posted on November 30, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Bruce Wollmering, Finian McDonald, Fran Hoefgen, Richard Eckroth, Thomas Gillespie

*** Rev. Richard Eckroth

Timeline  |  Key Documents  |  File 1  |  File 2  |  File 3

*** Rev. Thomas Gillespie

Timeline  |  Key Documents  |  File 1

*** Rev. Francis Hoefgen

Timeline  |  Key Documents  |  File 1

*** Rev. Finian McDonald

Timeline  |  Key Documents  |  File 1  |  File 2

*** Rev. Bruce Wollmering

Timeline  |  Key Documents  |  File 1  |  File 2

 

Sex offending monks have no contact with students … or do they?

Posted on November 28, 2015
Posted in Finian McDonald, Joelle Casteix

“Hmmm … if the 6th though 12th graders at [Saint John’s Preparatory School]  want to get something to eat or attend Mass, how do they avoid all of those pesky sex-offending monks in the Monastic Residence?” – Joelle Casteix

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Vatican thwarts review boards, documents show

Posted on November 25, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Finian McDonald, Joelle Casteix, Review Board

(Worthy Adversary) Everything the bishops have been led you to believe about the independent power of lay review boards is deliberately misleading.

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St. John’s Abbey monk accused of abuse reports 200 sexual encounters

Posted on November 24, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Bruce Wollmering, Finian McDonald, Fran Hoefgen, Richard Eckroth, Thomas Gillespie

(Star Tribune) One priest reported 200 sexual encounters, including some with students at St. John’s University and prep school.

Another recorded the names of dozens of boys he brought to a cabin, some of whom he sexually abused.

Another abuser was paid $30,000 by St. John’s Abbey to support him as he left the clergy.

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Settlement sparks release of monk files

Posted on November 24, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Bruce Wollmering, Finian McDonald, Fran Hoefgen, Jeff Anderson, John Klassen, Richard Eckroth, Thomas Gillespie

(SC Times) ST. PAUL — The personnel files of five St. John’s Abbey monks were released Tuesday as part of the settlement of a lawsuit against the abbey and one of its monks. Read More

Secret files on St. John’s Abbey monks show hundreds of possible victims

Posted on November 24, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Finian McDonald, Jeff Anderson, John Klassen

ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) – Brand new, once-secret files on 19 monks from St. John’s Abbey show they may have abused hundreds of children. Attorney Jeff Anderson released the files of 5 of those monks Tuesday, saying time is running out for victims to step forward.
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St. John’s Abbey monk accused of abuse reports 200-plus sexual encounters

Posted on November 24, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Aelred Senna, Bruce Wollmering, Finian McDonald, Fran Hoefgen, Jeff Anderson, Richard Eckroth, Thomas Gillespie

(StarTribune) The first batch of personnel files on monks accused of sex abuse at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville were released Tuesday, in which a former counselor and dormitory prefect at St. John’s University reported having 200 sexual encounters — some with St. John students.
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Released Files: Rev. Gillespie’s 1996 Removal from St. Joseph, Minnesota

Posted on November 24, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Thomas Gillespie, Timothy Kelly

Earlier today, files were released regarding Father Tom Gillespie’s 1996 removal from St. Joseph, Minnesota.

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Media Advisory: McDonald, Wollmering, Eckroth, Gillespie, Hoefgen Files

Posted on November 23, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Bruce Wollmering, Finian McDonald, Fran Hoefgen, Jeff Anderson, Michael Bryant, Richard Eckroth, Thomas Gillespie

Release the files of five St. John’s monks accused of sexually abusing children.

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Abbey Statement on Release of Files

Posted on November 22, 2015
Posted in 2015 File Release, Jeff Anderson, John Klassen
[Webmaster’s Note: The following statement was made by Saint John’s Abbey ahead of Tuesday’s release of five priest files.  The files were turned over and are being released as part of a settlement between the abbey and one of Father Allen Tarlton’s victims. The abbey is not, as they claim below, “voluntarily sharing these documents.”]

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Web Site Feedback

Posted on November 9, 2015
Posted in Web Site Updates, Withholding Donations

I’ve followed your site in the past, and the developments of the Jacob Wetterling case brought it back to the forefront of my mind. I just wanted to say “thank you” for all your hard work. I really enjoyed my four years at Saint John’s University. However, I was never close with any of the monks. I am glad that was the case. There is a complete lack of institutional control that is a poison on that campus.

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Abbey leader says priest exonerated of molesting choirboy

Posted on November 6, 2015
Posted in John Klassen, Tim Backous

DULUTH, Minn. — A priest who was accused of molesting a choirboy during a European tour in 1990 has been exonerated in a third-party investigation, according to the abbot of his monastery.

But an advocate for victims of sexual abuse by priests isn’t satisfied.

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Another Accused Priest With Saint John’s Ties

Posted on October 13, 2015
Posted in Antonio Marfori

Marfori[Webmaster’s Note: The Rev. Antonio Marfori graduated from St. John’s University in 1972. Marfori is the 85th alleged perpetrator with ties to Saint John’s. See List.]

AP: Story Below
SC Times: Here
MPR: Here

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A priest at an Elk River parish and school is being accused of abusing a teen in the 1970s.

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Catholic Church Sex Abuse Survivors Frustrated By Pope Francis’ US Visit, Lack Of Action

Posted on September 25, 2015
Posted in Ben Spanier, Pat Marker, Tom Andert

[Marker] pointed to the case of his classmate Ben Spanier, whose parents allege he was abused by the Rev. Thomas Andert at Saint John’s Abbey in the mid-1990s. Pending a separate investigation, the accused priest was put on leave this past August — too late for Spanier, who killed himself in December 2014.
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‘Incest’ best describes abuse by those you trust

Posted on September 24, 2015
Posted in Opinion, Tom Andert

“I thought of this when I recently learned a victim of sexual predation at St. John’s Preparatory School recently took his life. I thought of this as I reflected on my own experience as a victim of sexual assault while at St. John’s Prep and how it took me 30 years before I could openly discuss my experience without fearing shame, remorse, guilt or reprisal.” – Maj John Donovan

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The Perpetrator’s Psalm

Posted on September 20, 2015
Posted in Anthony Ruff, John Klassen, Pope Francis, Pope Francis 2015 Visit
ruff_you_tube

Courtesy: YouTube

Credibly accused Saint John’s Abbey monk perpetrator Father Anthony Ruff wrote a psalm that will be used during Pope Francis’ visit to the United States later this week.

While Father Ruff’s psalm has received some attention (Saint Cloud Times,  Saint Cloud Diocese, Catholic Herald), credible allegations of sexual misconduct against Father Ruff have yet to be publicly acknowledged by the leadership at Saint John’s Abbey.

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Andert, Taylor, Ward, Backous “Under Investigation”

Posted on August 24, 2015
Posted in Dan Ward, Mel Taylor, Tim Backous, Tom Andert

An investigation into misconduct by Father Tom Andert is reportedly underway [ Link ]. The results of three previously announced “investigations” into alleged abuse by three monk perpetrators (Fathers Dan Ward, Mel Taylor and Timothy Backous) have yet to be make public.

Will the investigation into Father Tom Andert be any different?

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