Greek Orthodox Church Reacts to Guilty Verdict in Priest Sex Abuse Trial

By Adrienne Dipiazza
WABI
March 18, 2015

http://wabi.tv/2015/03/18/greek-orthodox-church-reacts-to-guilty-verdict-in-priest-sex-abuse-trial/

The faithful at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Bangor are reacting to the conviction of their former leader on child sex charges.

A judge found ex-priest Adam Metropoulous guilty Tuesday of sexual abuse of a minor.

He pled guilty Monday to child pornography and invasion of privacy charges.

The church’s parish council president Lee Speronis says he and many parishioners never expected that the case would go to trial, and that it’s been a rough several months for the church.

But now that Metropoulos has been found guilty, Speronis says the healing process can begin.

“Everybody heals at their own pace, and everybody reacts differently. And it’s really important to understand that, respect each other’s sensitivities. The Diocese of Boston has been great. It’s given us access numbers for people to call, call the professionals that know how to care for people in this scenario. And we all need hugs, that’s for sure. But some people need more than that. And Boston’s been fantastic about that. And this is all pretty fresh. It just happened yesterday. So I’ve heard from many people. The feelings are all over the place, quite honestly,” Speronis said.

He says the church is still searching for a new permanent priest.

Meantime he tells us now that the criminal case has wrapped up, the Diocese of Boston hopes to begin church court proceedings soon.

That will likely result in Metropoulos being officially defrocked.