OREGON
Bend Bulletin
Father James Radloff has since left the Catholic Church
By Scott Hammers / The Bulletin
Published Oct 16, 2014
A Catholic priest who was dismissed from his position in Bend last year has filed a complaint with the state Bureau of Labor and Industries.
Father James Radloff headed the Bend-based St. Francis of Assisi parish for nearly two years before he was dismissed last October by Liam Cary, bishop of the Diocese of Baker.
Radloff and the diocese have said little about the events leading up to Radloff’s dismissal, alluding to an unspecified dispute between the former priest and Cary.
The complaint, filed with the Labor Bureau on Sept. 30, states the disagreement between Cary and Radloff can be traced to an incident prior to Easter 2013, when Cary allegedly conducted an approximately hour-long confession with a teenage boy. “When the boy emerged, he appeared shaken, upset and distraught,” the complaint states, and according to Radloff, the boy’s parents reported the incident to Radloff.
Radloff reported the incident to Cary, the complaint states, and asked that Cary refrain from taking confessions from children until it could be investigated. The complaint alleges Cary told Radloff he had “crossed a line” by reporting the incident, and launched a campaign to damage Radloff’s reputation and ultimately remove him from his post.
The complaint details 29 allegations of mistreatment by Cary and the diocese, with Radloff claiming he was evicted from parish housing on four days’ notice and forbidden from traveling within the diocese, which covers nearly two-thirds of Oregon.
Radloff was barred from performing the duties of a priest at his mother’s home parish in Chicago, the complaint states, and parishioners in Bend were given false and misleading information about his dismissal, “creating the misconception that I was a ‘pedophile priest.’”
A prospective employer who contacted Cary’s office seeking a reference was told, according to the complaint, “when Bishop Cary gets through with Father Radloff, he won’t be allowed to perform Ash Wednesday mass at a mini-mart.”
Bill Buchanan, a Bend attorney representing Radloff, said given the conditions placed on him by Cary and the Diocese of Baker, Radloff was effectively no longer “a priest in good standing” once he was dismissed.
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