A Second Open Letter to Lansing’s Bishop: “do What Is Just and Resign”

Veracity blog
March 15, 2019

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A woman’s own investigation into a priest she says sexually harassed her at a church in Fenton has prompted more calls for Lansing Bishop Earl Boyea to resign from his position.

In an open letter released Thursday, the woman also asks for the resignation of Lisa Kutas, who is the director of Human Resources for the Diocese of Lansing.

The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, is a parishioner at St. John the Evangelist in Fenton. She said she has been an active member of the church for several years.

Veracity is not naming her because she is a victim of sexual harassment. She also fears retaliation against her family.

The woman filed a sexual harassment complaint against Father Mathew Joseph in August 2018. She sent three letters to Bishop Boyea.

According to those letters, the woman claims Father Joseph sexually harassed her and was spiritually and verbally abusive during an appointment for spiritual counsel in July 2018.

In one case, during an appointment, she said Father Joseph asked her for intimate details of her background. She’s a survivor of sexual assault.

In October 2018, shortly after the woman’s complaint, the Diocese announced that it “dismissed” Father Joseph due to several complaints about his ministry, including “a credible allegation of sexual harassment of an adult female.”

Mathew was also ordered to return to his home in India, according to the October statement from the Lansing Diocese.

The woman said the Diocese of Lansing failed to take her seriously and has refused to be transparent about why Father Joseph was removed from the parish.

She also said the Diocese has failed to explain why Joseph has been declared “unfit” to fulfill his duties.

Unsatisfied with the way her complaint was handled, the woman said she began doing some investigating of her own and discovered there’s more to Father Joseph’s background.

The information she uncovered is detailed in her open letter addressed to Bishop Boyea. You can read the full letter by clicking here: Second Open Letter calls on Lansing Bishop to resign

“It has been several months since my sexual harassment allegation against Fr. Matthew Joseph m.c.b.s was mishandled completely by the Diocese of Lansing,” she said. “I was found to be credible, but was ignored as you placed him back into my parish. He was permitted to continue his abuse for several days before more complaints were made, including at least one involving a minor. The Diocese has stated that he was sent back to his order in India. I did my own investigation about his location, and upon doing so discovered that the level of negligence was much deeper than I imagined.”

In a 2017 index showing an Alphabetical list of Diocesan and Religious Priests of the United States, Father Mathew Joseph is listed as a priest associated with St. Patrick Catholic Church in Gainesville, Florida.

“Through contact with the Diocese of St. Augustine in Florida I was able to determine that Fr. Mathew Joseph had been assigned there, but that his faculties had been removed after complaints about his ministry,” the letter said. “After lying to staff at St. Patrick about the reason for his departure, he then conspired with his order, the Missionary Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament, to remain in the U.S and move to another Diocese.”

In an email document shared with Veracity, Tina Nugent, the Victim Assistance Coordinator for the Diocese of St. Augustine, said that Prior to arriving in Jacksonville, Father Joseph was in Kerala, India with his order participating in various ministries from 2008-2016.

“Records also indicate he served in the Diocese of Memphis, TN from 2001 until 2007,” Nugent said. “Based on the dates, I can only assume he returned to his order in India following his departure from Memphis.”

However, in a St. John’s bulletin from July 2018, Father Joseph claims he has never been assigned to a parish in the United States before his assignment in the Saginaw Diocese.

He also does not disclose his time serving as a priest in Florida and Tennessee.

In her letter, the woman claims the Diocese of Saginaw accepted Father Mathew for assignment under “suspicious circumstances,” where Father Mathew Joseph stated that he was in Florida visiting friends.

“He lasted one year before requesting transfer into the Diocese of Lansing, again under suspicious circumstances,” the woman wrote in her letter.

It was information that she said, was not hard to find.

“I made a few phone calls, and completed a basic google search. The Diocese of St. Augustine had access to his full assignment history, yet you and your staff were unable or unwilling to find it,” she said. “The Diocese of Saginaw was well aware that he had been in the state of Florida, but you and your staff either forgot or did not wish to ask them for that information.”

The woman also shared an audio recording with Veracity where Cheryl Williams-Hecksel, the victim assistance coordinator for the Diocese of Lansing, admitted that the Diocese’s process for vetting international religious order priests “wasn’t what it should have been.”

“She also admitted that she and HR director Lisa Kutas had discussed making a better investment on the front end, and the heartache it would have saved me and my parish,” the woman said in her letter. “This negligence allowed a predator to enter into our Diocese. Worse yet, the mechanisms available to catch and remove him failed miserably.”

Michael Diebold, a spokesperson for the Diocese of Lansing, released the following statement in response to the recent open letter saying:

“It is inappropriate for the Diocese of Lansing to engage with an anonymous victim via a public internet exchange using a reporter as intermediary. If anyone has reason to suspect physical, sexual or emotional abuse of any person of any age, please contact Protective Services or the police, as appropriate.”

In his statement, Diebold also included the phone numbers and email addresses for individuals to contact the Michigan Attorney General’s Office and the Diocese of Lansing if they believe they have information related to the current investigation. That information can be found below.

“We continue to pray that Christ will bring healing to all victims and to his Church,” Diebold added.

In 2018, Diebold said Father Joseph approached the Diocese of Lansing for assignment as a priest.

He also said the Diocese of Saginaw gave the Diocese of Lansing a letter of suitability stating that Father Mathew was a priest in “good standing” and had no allegations of inappropriate behavior.

A letter of suitability is required when a priest visits another diocese for ministerial purposes or seeks employment there.

“Your investigative priest, Fr. Karl Pung, failed to demonstrate his competency for the job, yet he still remains in that position. On November 2nd I asked you in a meeting to assign an expert to work in tandem with Fr. Pung and provide him with additional training,” the open letter says. “It is my understanding that that suggestion was completely rejected. Once again, it is not a learn as you go job. I deserved better, and this Diocese deserves better.”

In her open letter to Bishop Boyea, the woman said Father Joseph “should have never made it into the Diocese of Saginaw or the Diocese of Lansing.”

The woman believes a proper investigation into Joseph’s background was never completed by either Diocese.

The Diocese of Saginaw did not respond to a request for comment.

“Simply put, I would have never been abused by Fr. Mathew Joseph if the Diocese of Saginaw and the Diocese of Lansing had not been negligent in their hiring practices,” she said. “A level of justice must be served to resolve this.”

In light of this information, the woman says it is necessary for both Bishop Boyea and Lisa Kutas to step down.

“There is no other way for trust to be re-established, or for the Diocese to move forward,” she said.

But that’s not all the woman is requesting the Bishop and Diocese of Lansing to do.

She’s also asking for the following:

The Diocese of Lansing to provide proof that Father Joseph left the country saying: “Your statement indicated that he was sent back to his order in India. He has a history of hiding in the U.S, and I have found no evidence that he returned to his home country.”

Remove Father Karl Pung (Diocese of Lansing) from his position as investigative priest saying: “The information the review board receives is dependent on the competency of the priest in this position. He does not have the training or the experience necessary to ensure our safety.”

Be transparent about what information the Diocese of Saginaw gave to the Diocese of Lansing and/or Bishop Boyea about Father Joseph saying: “If they withheld information, you must publicly call them out for their deception and negligence. Specifically the Vicar General who facilitated his transfer into the Diocese of Saginaw.”

Contact the Diocese of Saginaw, the Diocese of Saint Augustine in Florida and the Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee to request that statements be made about Father Joseph’s removal saying: “It should be standard practice that all previous assignments are informed of allegations of abuse.”

Contact the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to tell them about Father Joseph so “that he is never able to regain faculties in the U.S again.”

Suspend any acceptance of international religious order priests until the Diocese of Lansing can be sure that is “vetting processes are adequate,” saying: “Acceptance of priests from the Missionary Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament should be suspended indefinitely.”

In her open letter, the woman said the Diocese of Lansing needs a bishop “who is willing to make the changes necessary to keep everyone safe.”

“So far, you have demonstrated that you’re unable and unwilling to do it,” she said. “For the good of the Diocese of Lansing, you must do what is just and resign.”

Anyone with information about the Catholic Church is encouraged to contact the Michigan Attorney General’s Office at 844-324-3374 (Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.) or send information by email.

To submit a tip, you can click here to leave your name, phone number and an email address. You can remain anonymous.

You can also contact Cheryl Hecksel-Williams (Diocesan Victim Assistance Coordinator) at (888) 308-6252 or email: vac@dioceseoflansing.org