Assignment Record – Rev. James P. Stark

Summary of Case: Rev. James P. Stark was ordained for the St. Paul archdiocese February 22, 1964. For thirteen years he moved through a number of parishes in the archdiocese as an assistant priest. In 1977 Stark was named pastor of St. Michael's in Farmington, where he remained until his removal in 1986. He died March 29, 1999. Stark's name was included on a February 2014 list released by the archdiocese of priests with "substantiated" claims of sexual abuse of minors against them. The archdiocese did not reveal details of claims against Stark.

Ordained: Feb. 22, 1964
Died: March 29, 1999


     

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

1964

St. Paul archbishop was Leo Binz (1961-1975).

1967 St. Stephen's Anoka MN 3/3 St. Stephen's had a school with 800-650 students.
1967 1969 St. Andrew's St. Paul MN 3/3 St. Andrew's had a school with 503-477 students.
1969 1973 Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Bloomington MN 2/3 Nativity of the B.V.M. had a school with 519-456 students.
1973 1974 Holy Spirit St. Paul MN 2/2 Holy Spirit had a school with 485 students.

1974

Binz was succeeded by John Robert Roach (1975-1995).

1977 St. Peter's Richfield MN 2/3 St. Peter's had a school with 420-338 students.
1977 1986 St. Michael's Farmington MN 1/1 Stark was removed from ministry in 1986.
1986 1989 Absent on Leave       Stark is not indexed beyond the 1989 Directory. He died March 29, 1999.

 

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1965-1989)

• James Stark Assignments, Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Feb. 16, 2014
• Archdiocese of St Paul & Minneapolis List of Priests Accused of Abuse, Feb. 17, 2014
• Archdiocese Names More Priests Credibly Accused of Abuse, By Euan Kerr St. Paul, Minnesota Public Radio, February 17, 2014

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 Stark'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 March 3, 2014