OMAHA (NB)
World-Herald
November 5, 2018
By Alia Conley
Dozens of parishioners of a church in West Point, Nebraska, are voicing their support for a Catholic priest who resigned last week after the Omaha Archdiocese reviewed clergy assignments.
The Rev. Andy Syring, 41, left St. Mary’s Catholic Church after Archbishop George Lucas’ recent promise to “hold clergy to a higher standard of ministerial conduct.”
But more than 100 people have expressed support for Syring online, some sending prayers and others asking how they can fight the “injustice.”
Charissa J. Steffensmeier wrote that the West Point community is dealing with “outrage, confusion and dismay about that decision.” In a letter to Lucas, Steffensmeier asks him to reconsider accepting the resignation and praised Syring’s compassion, empathy, love for the church and ability to connect with parishioners of all backgrounds.
In 2014, Syring was accused of “significant boundary violations with young adults and minors” when he was associate pastor of Divine Mercy parish in Schuyler.
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