ALASKA
Fairbanks News-Miner
Dermot Cole
The Rev. Pat Bergquist, a Catholic priest from the Fairbanks diocese, is to receive the “Priest of Integrity Award” this weekend from a Catholic group at its Boston conference, recognizing his writings about the clergy sexual abuse scandal in his book “The Long Dark Winter’s Night: Reflections of a Priest in a Time of Pain and Privilege.”
A press release from the Voice of the Faithful says the award “acknowledges specific actions demonstrating the leadership needed in the Catholic Church.”
Bergquist, the former parish priest at St. Raphael’s Catholic Church in Fairbanks, is now pastor at Holy Mary of Guadalupe Parish, Healy; St. Theresa’s Parish, Nenana. He also works with those at Clear Air Force Base and the villages of Tanana and Huslia.
“Bergquist forces readers to reflect on the raw wounds exposed by the scandals with an uncompromising authenticity and brokenness, all within the context of universal truths spoken by prophets, poets, and in iconic passages of Scripture,” said Bill Casey, former VOTF trustee, who nominated Bergquist for the Priest of Integrity Award, the press release said.
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