Rev. John W. Lennon – Assignment History

Summary of Case: John W. Lennon was ordained for the Maryknoll order in 1955. After a year of studies in New York, the Philippines, Massachusetts and Ireland, he settled into ministry in the Philippines. There for over a decade, Lennon pastored several parishes, directed high schools, was a college president and served as superintendent of schools for the Tagum diocese. He was also a U.S. military chaplain. Lennon returned to the United States in the late 1960s, working in pastoral ministry for a short time at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, followed by a brief stint as associate pastor of St. Anthony's in New York's Bronx borough. In 1970 Lennon was assigned to New York's Cardinal Hayes High School where he he served as a teacher, administrator, and moderator of athletics. He appears to have left the Maryknolls in approximately 1975. In 1981 he left Cardinal Hayes to pastor St. Gregory's parish in Manhattan, remaining there until 1989 when he became pastor of St. John the Baptist in Yonkers.

In April 2002 Lennon was suspended from ministry after an accusation emerged that he had molested a Cardinal Hayes High School student in the mid-1970s. His accuser said that he was on the school's hockey team when Lennon was in charge of athletics, and that the abuse occurred during weekend trips. Lennon denied the accusation.

In April 2008 it was reported in Catholic New York, the archdiocesan newspaper, that "in accord with the provisions of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the following priest of the Archdiocese of New York, having had his case presented to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has been dismissed from the clerical state: John Lennon."

On April 26, 2019, the Archdiocese of New York published a "List of Archdiocesan Clergy Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse of a Minor or the Subject of Eligible IRCP Compensation Claims" at the URL:

https://archny.org/list

We saved a copy of that list here. John W. Lennon is #32 on the part of the list devoted to clergy that "have been credibly accused of sexual abuse of a minor." The Lennon entry provides the folllowing information:

Year of Ordination: 1955
DOD: 2012
Status: Removed from ministry; laicized; deceased

This publication of the archdiocesan list includes the following statement:

"The inclusion of a cleric’s name on the list does not state or imply that he is guilty of a crime or liable for any civil claim.  The criminal justice system presumes that a person who has been indicted by a grand jury, or otherwise accused of or charged with a crime, is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, a defendant in a civil action is not liable unless a plaintiff proves otherwise.  Where an allegation involving an archdiocesan cleric resulted in a civil settlement, there was not a finding of liability against the archdiocese or the cleric, as is typically the case with civil settlements."

Born: January 20, 1928
Ordained: June 11, 1955
Educated: Maryknoll Jr. Seminary, Maryknoll Jr. College, Maryknoll Major Seminary
Laicized: 2008
Died: December 16, 2012

1956

Diocese of Lipa

Bishop was Alejandro Ayson Olalia (1953-1973).

1960

Prelature Nullius of Dava

Bishop was Clovis Joseph Thibauld (Thibault), P.M.E. (1954-1972).

1967

Archdiocese of Boston

Archbishop was Richard James Cushing (1944-1970).

1969

Archdiocese of New York

Archbishop was Terence James Cooke (1968-1983).

associate pastor

New York (Bronx)

• A priest reportedly notified the archdiocese in 1997 of an allegation that Lennon fondled a Hayes student in the mid-1970s. His accuser said that he was on the school's hockey team when Lennon was in charge of athletics, and that the abuse occurred during weekend trips to Maine. Lennon denied the accusation. Msgr. Edward O'Donnell led an investigation that reportedly cleared Lennon in 1998.

Cardinal Hayes High had 2,235-1,297 students, all male.

Lennon appears to have left the Maryknoll order around 1975; beginning with the 1976 Directory he is no longer indexed or listed in the New York pages with the Maryknoll suffix," m.m."

During 1973-1978 Lennon is listed at Cardinal Hayes as "residing elsewhere."

1981

Cooke was succeeded by John Joseph O'Connor (1984-2000).

1989

Edward Michael Egan followed O'Connor as New York Archbishop (2000-2009).

Yonkers

1/3, 1/2, 1/4

Lennon was also chaplain for the Yonkers Fire Department.

Lennon was suspended from ministry in April 2002 for an allegation that he had sexually abused a Cardinal Hayes High School student in the mid-1970s. This was the same allegation which had been investigated by the archdiocese in 1998; Lennon had been cleared in that earlier investigation.

In April 2008, the archdiocesan newspaper, Catholic New York, stated on page 8: "In accord with the provisions of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the following priest of the Archdiocese of New York, having had his case presented to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has been dismissed from the clerical state: John Lennon." This announcement was quoted in an April 7, 2008 article by religion reporter Gary Stern.

Lennon died December 16, 2012. His obituary presents him as a priest, making no mention of his laicization.

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Source: Official Catholic Directory (Kenedy & Sons, 1956-2002).

• Sex scandal claims Yonkers pastor, by Gary Stern and Ernie Garcia, Journal News, April 19, 2002
• Vicar Apologizes to Yonkers Parish, by Bruce Golding, Journal News, April 21, 2002
• The Accused, USA Today, November 11, 2002
• Yonkers Parishioners Demand Priest's Return, by Gary Stern, Journal News, January 12, 2003
• Egan Shutting Door on Suspended Priests, by Gary Stern, Journal News, September 14, 2003
• Six N.Y. Priests Defrocked, by Gary Stern, Journal News, July 9, 2005
• 6 Years Later, a Former Yonkers Priest is Quietly Defrocked, by Gary Stern, Blogging Religiously, April 7, 2008; this article by religion reporter Gary Stern quotes an April 2008 announcement of laicization from Catholic New York, the archdiocesan newspaper; we have also cached a PDF of Stern's article.
• Rev. John Lennon, Flower Funeral Home, December 16, 2002
• List of Archdiocesan Clergy Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse of a Minor or the Subject of Eligible IRCP Compensation Claims, Archdiocese of New York, April 26, 2019

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Lennon's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with archdiocesan statements regarding his status and reports in the media about the allegation against him. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegations we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.