Assignment Record – Rev. Harold J. Greif, s.j.

Summary of Case: Rev. Harold J. Greif was a Jesuit who spent the bulk of his priesthood in Alaska. He was ordained in 1940 and died in 1991. Greif was the subject of allegations of sexual abuse by at least two people, according to bankruptcy reorganization documents from the diocese of Fairbanks in 2010.

Ordained: 1940
Died:Oct. 28, 1991


   

Start Stop Parish/Assignment Town/Accusations State/Country Position Notes

1940

San Francisco archbishop was John Joseph Mitty (1935-1961).

1941 Alma College Alma CA  

1941

Seattle bishop was Gerald Shaughnessy, s.m. (1933-1950).

1942 Manresa Hall Port Townsend WA Jesuit Tertianship  
1942 1946 U.S. Army     chaplain  
1946 1948 Bellarmine High School Tacoma WA Bellarmine high had

1948

Vicariate Apostolic of Alaska bishop was Francis Doyle Gleeson, s.j. (1948-1968).

1952 Holy Cross Mission Holy Cross AK 2/2 Holy Cross Mission had a boaring school and orphanage with 120-193 students.
      Pimute, Flate, Shageluk, Railroad City AK These were missions of Holy Cross Mission.

1952

Fairbanks diocese was established Aug. 8, 1962. Gleeson remained bishop.

Anchorage diocese was established Feb. 9, 1966. Its bishop was John Joseph Thomas Ryan (1966-1975).

1967 Holy Rosary

Dillingham

• In 2010 the Fairbanks diocese revealed in bankruptcy reorganization documents that Greif was accused of sexual abuse by at least two people.

AK

2/2, 2/3, 2/4

Rev. George S. Endal was pastor 1952-1962.

Holy Rosary had a school from 1953 on with 16-52 students.

Endal was named in a 2011 settlement as one of the Jesuits' top ten worst alleged offenders, with 25 claims of child sexual abuse - of both boys and girls - against him.
1954 1962   Clark's Point, Naknek, King Salmon     These were stations of Holy Rosary in Dillingham.
1962 1965   Clark's Point, Naknek, King Salmon, Levelock     These were stations of Holy Rosary in Dillingham.
1965 1966   (Dillingham) Clark's Point, Egegik, Ekuk, Fort Randell (Cold Bay), Kanakanak, King Solmon, Levelock, Naknek (So. Naknek), Newhalen, Nondalton, Port Heiden, Togiak     These were stations of Holy Rosary in Dillingham.
1966 1967   Egegig, King Salmon, Levelock, South Naknek     This were missions of Holy Rosary in Dillingham.
1967 1969 Holy Family/Copper Valley School Glennallen AK 1/2 Copper Valley School had 67 boys and 80 girls.

1969

Fairbanks bishop was Robert Louis Whelan, s.j. (1968-1985).

1983 St. Joseph's Nome AK

2/2

Rev. James Poole, s.j. was pastor 1969-1979.

Poole has been the subject of multiple accusations of sexual abuse of young girls.
1969 1971   King Island Village, Little Diocmede Island, Telle  

 

 These were stations of St. Joseph's in Nome.
1971 1983   Little Diocmede Island, Telle     These were stations of St. Joseph's in Nome.

1983

Spokane bishop was Lawrence Harold Welsh (1978-1990), followed by William Stephen Skylstad (1990-2010).

1991 Gonzaga University Spokane WA   Greif died OCt. 28, 1991.

 

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1941-1992)

• Excerpt from Bankruptcy Reorganization Documents for Fairbanks Diocese, Jan. 25, 2010, p. 1
• Assignment Record – Rev. George S. Endal, s.j., BishopAccountability.org
• Assignment Record – Rev. James E. Poole, s.j., BishopAccountability.org

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Greif's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on Feb. 6, 2014.