Holley’s actions draw ire of priests

A retired priest of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis has sent a letter to a Vatican official expressing concerns about new Bishop Martin Holley’s wholesale reassignment of parish priests.

“You don’t move 75 percent of the priests in the first few months of your administration,” Rev. Jim Danner wrote in his June 26 letter to Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the papal nuncio, or the pope’s ambassador to Washington.

“Especially if they only have one year before retirement or only have under 2 years in their present assignment. This is unfair to the priests and their faithful service and the People of God in the Diocese.”

One diocesan priest, Rev. David Graham in Jackson, has declined to move to his new assignment and is appealing Holley’s reassignment under canon law, according to Danner and other members of the diocese.

Graham declined to comment, but Danner and two other priests who asked not to be identified say Graham was the only diocesan priest who refused Holley’s request a few months ago to sign a letter of resignation from his pulpit.

Graham has been pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Jackson for two years. He grew up in Jackson and is caring for his mother there. Holley wanted to reassign him to a parish in Memphis.

Holley, who was installed as bishop in October, has reassigned nearly every other parish priest in the diocese, at least 75 percent of them according to Danner and others.

Parishes will be receiving their new priests this weekend.

Holley has declined several requests for comment. He has not provided a public explanation for the changes nor released a list of priest appointments. The nuncio’s office did not respond to a request for a comment.

The diocesan priests who were reassigned included two who were a year from retirement and several who have served fewer than three years in their current assignments.

That includes Rev. Ernie DeBlasio, who was reassigned after serving three years as pastor of Church of the Incarnation in Collierville.

Artie Byrd, Incarnation’s finance committee chairman, also sent a letter to the papal nuncio in Washington ask-