BUFFALO (NY)
Patheos blog
April 30, 2019
By Mary Pezzulo
I have just read a deeply upsetting article about the Diocese of Buffalo. I encourage you to read it yourself– but be careful if you read the attached complete written account, as it is extremely graphic.
The article concerns a report from a group of seminarians who wish to remain nameless for fear of repercussions. These seminarians were forced to listen to extremely disgusting, sexually explicit conversation and jokes about sexual abuse made by priests at a party. These priests have been suspended for the moment, but a diocesan spokeswoman suggests that they will be allowed back into active ministry.
The priest are identified as Reverend Art Mattulke of Saints Peter and Paul Church in Hamburg, New York; Reverend Bob Orlowski; and Reverend Patrick O’Keefe. Mattulke is a designated spiritual director for the seminarians at Christ the King Seminary. They jokingly described the sounds of a man and woman having sex on a retreat; they joked that a female dentist of their acquaintance wanted to “f*** a seminarian” and repeatedly asked the young men if they wanted to have sex with her. They laughingly shared the story of a priest professor from the seminary who gave oral sex at truck stops and compared the ejaculate to Holy Communion.
Reverend Orlowski referred to a woman who had formerly worked at his parish by the c-word multiple times and bragged about “putting her in her place.” He joked about the bishop enjoying anal sex. He and Mattulke made cruel jokes about obese and incontinent parishioners. Mattulke bragged in graphic detail about a series of photos of an ejaculation that were sent to him by a parishioner. The priests even joked about the professors and formation director at Christ the King Seminary sexually harassing and abusing seminarians, even perhaps engaging in anal sex with them in the dormitories as part of an “exam.”
I don’t think it can be denied that powerful people intimidating an underling into listening to prurient talk is a form of sexual harassment. Imagine how you’d feel if the priests were talking to a laywoman that way, instead of a seminarian, and the woman reported feeling like she couldn’t just leave, that she was forced to listen, that she was repeatedly asked to have sex with someone even if the request was framed as a joke.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.