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	Was St. Paul Priest's Sex with Parishioner a Crime? Jury to Decide By Richard Chin Pioneer Press November 15, 2011 http://www.twincities.com/ci_19335239 She was a naive, inexperienced young woman who was seeking spiritual aid and comfort from a priest who manipulated her into having a long-term sexual relationship. Or she was a woman who pursued a friendship with a priest that developed into a romance, then an ill-fated love affair. Those two versions of the relationship between Roman Catholic priest Christopher Thomas Wenthe and one of his parishioners at a St. Paul church were presented Monday in closing arguments at a Ramsey County District Court trial. At stake: whether Wenthe will be convicted of two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Prosecutors argue that Wenthe, 47, violated state laws forbidding a member of the clergy from having sex with someone who is receiving religious or spiritual advice, aid or comfort in private. His defense lawyer said Wenthe wasn't acting as a priest during the relationship: "It has nothing to do with being a priest. It's about lust." The Pioneer Press generally does not identify complainants of sex crimes. Both the woman and Wenthe testified at his trial that the sexual encounters began between the two starting in November 2003 when Wenthe was a 39-year-old newly ordained priest at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church in St. Paul, and the woman was a 21-year-old recent convert to Catholicism. Wenthe testified he and the woman had oral sex, anal sex and phone sex, but never intercourse. But they gave conflicting stories on details of their relationship, including how many times she gave confession to him, who suggested that she go up to his living quarters to give a confession, how each other dressed and whether she had orgasms during their encounters. Assistant County Attorney Karen Kugler said that Wenthe had the position of authority in the relationship and that he controlled where they were going to meet. "She held priests on a pedestal. Absolutely held priests on a pedestal. Because these are holy men," Kugler said. Kugler said the woman may have consented to the sexual encounters, but contended that is not a defense for a member of the clergy having sex with a person receiving religious or spiritual advice. "This priest, who is in a position of power and authority, this priest who has just been educated, who knew the boundaries, he brought the lubricant," Kugler said of one of the sexual encounters between Wenthe and the woman. "A friendship did develop, but always within the context of the priest-penitent relationship," Kugler said. "She trusted him. He is her priest." Defense attorney Paul Engh characterized the relationship between Wenthe and the woman as a romantic, not a religious, relationship. He said the woman initiated the friendship. "She makes the first move, as it were. She begins the relationship," he said. Engh described an outing between the woman and Wenthe as "a date." "This is not pastoral care," he said. "This isn't Bible study material here." Engh also described a meeting in which the two sat next to each other as "boyfriend and girlfriend." Engh said Wenthe cautioned the woman that their relationship could become inappropriate, but she invited him to dinner. "It that an exercise of caution, or is that a hustle?" Engh said. "Remember, he's not a priest. He's a human being here," he said. "This is spinning totally out of control. It's very un-priest-like. It has nothing to do with being a priest. It's about lust." Engh suggested that the woman was pursuing the relationship, and he questioned her credibility as a witness. "Why should you trust her?" Engh said. "She said 'I don't remember' so many times, I couldn't count them." Engh also questioned why the woman took until 2010 to report the sexual relationship to police. "There's a deep unfairness in waiting seven years to attempt a prosecution," Engh said. Kugler said the woman had earlier discussed the sexual encounters with officials with the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, but reported the incident to police after she learned that Wenthe was assigned to be head pastor of two rural churches in Delano and the woman thought he would not be supervised by the church. "To save other souls, she went to the police and she reported what the defendant did," Kugler said. In testimony Monday, former archbishop Harry Flynn testified he met with the woman after the relationship was reported to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, but he did not recall being told that the priest was the woman's confessor. Flynn said if a priest used confession as a way to develop a sexual relationship, it would be cause for excommunication. But Kugler pointed out that a letter the woman wrote to the archdiocese said she asked Wenthe to be her regular confessor. Engh said the case isn't about Wenthe, but about the woman's disagreement with the Catholic Church on where they assigned him. "It's about a desire on her part to control his life through the Catholic Church," Engh said. The jury got the case shortly before court adjourned for the day. Contact: rchin@pioneerpress.com
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