On July 7, Fr. John Corapi denied he is guilyy of some of the charges
leveled against him by his religious order. However, his response did
not address some of the serious complaints and instead focused on mostly
financial and legal concerns.
Fr. Corapi explained Thursday
that he “resigned” from the priesthood last month amid the allegations
“because the process used by the Church is grossly unjust, and, hence,
immoral.”
“I resigned because I had no chance from the beginning of a fair and just hearing,” he said.
A
July 5 statement from the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity
said that while Fr. Corapi was involved in public ministry he had
“sexual relations and years of cohabitation with a woman known to him,
when the relationship began, as a prostitute.”
The order’s
investigative team also found that he “repeatedly abused alcohol and
drugs,” “recently engaged in ‘sexting’ activity with one or more women
in Montana,” and holds legal title “to over $1 million in real estate,
numerous luxury vehicles, motorcycles, an ATV, a boat dock, and several
motor boats.”
Fr. Corapi defended his accumulation of real estate
and other luxuries as acceptable because of an arrangement with the
founder of the Society, Fr. James Flanagan.
When the Society was first
launched, Fr. Flanagan had a policy of encouraging each ministry of the
order to be self-supporting.
“I have never relied on the Society
for shelter, clothing, transportation, medical care, or legal counsel
and instead, using my history of success in business, set up my mission
as any savvy business man would, meanwhile continuing to support the
Society and many other Catholic Charities,” Fr. Corapi said.
The
Society also highlighted in its July 5 statement that a fact-finding
team created by the order “acquired information from Fr. Corapi’s
emails, various witnesses and public sources,” in response to a signed
letter from a woman who is well known to him.
The letter allegedly
details Fr. Corapi's sexual activity with adult “women.”
However, Fr.
Corapi's July 7 response does not address the accusation of being
involved with multiple women and simply states, “I have never had any
promiscuous or even inappropriate relations with her. Never.”
As
the order sought to carry out its investigation into the allegations
against Fr. Corapi in recent months, it said its fact-finding team was
hindered by a civil lawsuit the priest had filed and by non-disclosure
agreements he had negotiated with his accuser and other witnesses.
The civil lawsuit argued that his principal accuser had committed slander and breach of contract.
Fr.
Corapi has refused to dismiss the lawsuit and the team discovered many
other contracts that prevented “key witnesses” from speaking.
“I
never paid anybody off to remain silent,” Fr. Corapi said in his most
recent statement. “On two occasions there were standard severance
agreements executed with former employees and independent contractors.”
“These
agreements contained very common non-disclosure provisions. Any
attorney who would not include such provisions in such agreements would
rightly be guilty of negligent and actionable conduct.”
As part of
the July 5 update on the investigation of the charges against Fr.
Corapi, the superior of the Society, Fr. Gerry Shehan, ordered him under
his vow of obedience to “return home to the society’s regional office
and take up residence there,” and to “dismiss the lawsuit he has filed
against his accuser.”
But Fr. Corapi indicated in his reply that
he would not obey the order.
“If I were to commit to the suggestion of
the Society, then I would essentially crawl under a rock and wait to
die,” he said.
“However, I can not deny this desire to share aspects of
Truth and Hope with all those willing to hear.”