Former bishop’s name removed from center
Greensburg Diocese takes action against Connare
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Greensburg is removing the name of the late Bishop William G. Connare, its longest-serving spiritual leader, from its conference and retreat center while also suspending a priest from ministry pending investigation into an allegation of sexual abuse.
The actions are the latest fallout from a grand jury report into sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.
The diocese said in a statement that in the future, “nothing in the diocese will be named after a bishop, priest or deacon.”
Greensburg’s and five other dioceses were investigated by a grand jury that issued a voluminous report earlier this month on the history of their handling of sexual abuse cases.
Current Bishop Edward Malesic said he heard from several survivors of sexual abuse that “it
would be helpful to them for their recovery if his (Bishop Connare’s) name was not on that building.” He said he consulted with a group of lay people before renaming the facility.
The dioceses of Harrisburg and Pittsburgh have also removed bishops’ names from buildings following the grand jury’s investigation as past diocesan shepherds’ records are getting reappraised in light of the new revelations. The report heavily criticized many bishops’ handling of abusers, accusing them of participating in cover-up. Last week, Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik approved the removal of the name of his predecessor, Cardinal Donald Wuerl, from what is now North Catholic High School in Cranberry.
The Greensburg Diocese also said it had placed a priest on leave pending investigation of a claim against him. The Rev. Joseph E. Bonafed was pastor of Holy Family Parish in West Newton and St. Edward Parish in Herminie. The diocese referred the claims to law enforcement. The diocese said it learned this week of the allegation, dating back 28 years, but also learned that a person had reported the complaint against the priest to the attorney general’s office in April.
The Bishop William G. Connare Center, located in Unity, will be renamed Christ, Our Shepherd Center, according to the diocese. It hosts conferences, retreats and other diocesan events as well as wedding receptions and other public events.
It was named for Bishop Connare, who started out as a priest in the Diocese of Pittsburgh and later became bishop of Greensburg from 1960 to 1987. He died in 1995.
The statewide grand jury report stated that Bishop Connare had allowed a New York priest to transfer to the Greensburg diocese despite his record of abuse, which the priest allegedly repeated in assignments in this diocese; that he maintained other priests in ministry despite their records of abuse; and that he worked to find an assignment for a third priest in another diocese after he scandalized parishioners in the Greensburg diocese his abusive conduct.
“I think the survivors know he did things we would not have done today,” said Bishop Malesic.
As for the new name: “I wanted to show we follow the person of Jesus, I wanted to show we are disciples of him and he is good to us.”
He said he’s asking priests to review buildings and other items that may be named for clerics to see if any should be renamed. Already one parish has done so: Seven Dolors in Yukon, Westmoreland County, which had named a parish hall for the Rev. Thomas W. Rogers, a former pastor. According to the grand jury, Father Rogers attempted to sexually assault a teenage hitchhiker in 1962 in New York State. He denied it, Bishop Connare kept him in ministry at the time, but in 2002 the priest was removed from ministry when the U.S. bishops agreed to ban all abusers from ministry.
The hall was renamed in advance of Bishop Malesic’s previously scheduled visit there recently. Parishioners felt it would be inappropriate for the church to host the bishop in a hall named for a priest accused in the report, hesaid.
The diocese will also establish a lay board that, in addition to an existing board that reviews specific allegations, will monitor the diocese’s handling of abuse issues and “hold our feet to the fire” to make sure it remains a priority. Bishop Malesic hopes to include survivors of abuse on the board.
Bishop Malesic also plans a series of “listening sessions” around the diocese this fall. And the diocese will continue to undergo annual audits of its efforts in response to abuse.