A priest in the Washington, D.C., archdiocese who denied communion to a lesbian at her mother's funeral has been removed from ministry and placed on administrative leave.
A three-paragraph letter from an archdiocesan official, dated March 9, broke the news over the weekend.
The correspondence said that "effective today, Father Marcel Guarnizo's assignment at St. John Neumann is withdrawn and he has been placed on administrative leave with his priestly faculties removed until such time as an inquiry into his actions at the parish is completed."
Bishop Barry Knestout also said "credible allegations" against the priest for "intimidating behavior toward parish staff and others that is incompatible with proper priestly ministry" prompted the action.
The bishop also cited "the grave nature of these allegations," subsequent "confusion in the parish" and parishioners' "concerns" as reasons for prohibiting Guarnizo "from exercising any priestly ministry" in the archdiocese "until all matters are appropriately resolved with the hope that he might return to ministry."
Knestout's letter was addressed to archdiocesan clergy. His formal title is vicar general and moderator of the curia, which means he is in effect chief of staff for Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the archdiocese's spiritual leader.
During Sunday Masses, Rev. Thomas G. LaHood, pastor of St. John Neumann, read the letter to parishioners, saying Guarnizo's removal was not related to the funeral Mass incident, but "pertains to actions over the past week or two," a point LaHood reiterated.
Before reading the letter, LaHood said, "As we know there's been disagreement within the parish over how and to whom Communion is distributed. From my perspective this disagreement and related emotions flow from love. Love for Christ, really and truly present in the Eucharist. However, how we live out this love is important. The Scriptures tell us that we are known above all by how we love."
"I realize this letter is hard to hear. Please keep mind that this is a first personnel issue, dealing with issues of ministry in the church. Father Guarnizo will have every opportunity to present his position," said LaHood.
An audio recording of LaHood' comments was posted at www.restore-dc-catholicism.com .
Specifics of the "actions" transpiring "over the past week or two" are not yet clear. But conservative bloggers have defended Guarnizo at the same time challenging Johnson's version of the story by citing anonymous sources as witnesses to the incident in their disputing of her account.
Johnson has also been inaccurately dismissed in the conservative blogosphere, she said, as a "Muslim, Buddhist, and communist."
Reached by telephone, Johnson said, "I am a confirmed Catholic who has been greatly influenced by the work of Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk."
"One of the most relevant quotes of Merton, she added, "is his saying something to the effect that before he died, he wanted to be the best Buddhist he could be. If that's good enough for a Catholic Trappist monk, who is one of the most holy men of the 20th Century, that's good enough for me."
Johnson went on to say her "embracing of the teachings of the Buddha, in addition to the teachings I learned as child and hold dear to this day, is no contradiction for me."
"Nothing I have done or said in relationship to Buddhism conflicts whatsoever with my identity and practice as a Catholic."
In response to the letter announcing Guarnizo's removal, the Johnson family released a statement saying they "continue to pray for the Archdiocese of Washington, Father Guarnizo, and all Catholics during this time of upheaval. While we understand this letter does not pertain to the events that occurred at our mother's funeral, we are hopeful that Bishop Knestout's decision will ensure that no others will have to undergo the traumatic experiences brought upon our family. We urge all Catholics to put aside political points of view, and pray that our Church will remain in Christ's love."
LGBT Catholics greeted news of Guarnizo's removal with relief.
"What happened to Barbara Johnson and her family has saddened and outraged Catholics around the country and across the globe," said Marianne Duddy-Burke, executive director of Dignity USA, an advocacy organization.
"I hope that any Church official tempted to use the Eucharist as a weapon or punishment will take notice of what happened here, and refrain from similar action."
For his part, Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry, said, "The Archdiocese of Washington's removal of Fr. Marcel Guarnizo from priestly duties and parish life pending an investigation is a good first step towards ensuring that full and just reconciliation can occur for Barbara Johnson, her family, and the people of St. John Neumann parish."
"Though the cruel and insensitive way that Fr. Guarnizo treated Ms. Johnson at her mother's funeral is not mentioned in Bishop Knestout's letter, it should definitely be included in any investigation of 'intimidating behavior,' since that label can be accurately applied to his denial of communion to Ms. Johnson at her mother's funeral," said DeBernardo. "For that reason, Ms. Johnson and her family most certainly should be consulted in this investigation."
A gay-positive ministry of healing, reconciliation and social justice for LGBT Catholics, New Ways again called for "better training for priests and church professionals for ministering to and with LGBT people and their family members."
Offering his assessment, Chicago-based Joe Murray, executive director of the local Rainbow Sash Movement, zeroed in on LaHood's distancing Guarnizo's removal from the communion incident. "The Archdiocese has not condemned the actions of Father Guarnizo in denying Ms. Johnson communion," said Murray.
" [ It has ] merely said another action of the priest has forced them to suspend him. Linking the two actions together would be a naive position," Murray said, adding, "This a sly move on the part of the archdiocese to make them look good, while at the same time maintaining unofficial support for the priests actions as far as the Eucharist."
A priest of the Moscow archdiocese ( Russia ) , Guarnizo has served at St. John Neumann's for a year.
Nonetheless, Guarnizo grew up in northern Virginia and has spent much time in ministry in Russia and Eastern Europe, which Murray said, "should raise concerns about a more intense form of clericalism, because of the cultural religious differences."
Lesbian feminist theologian Mary E. Hunt, Ph.D., agreed. "While the Archdiocese has gone to some lengths to say that the removal of the priest from pastoral ministry was unrelated to the refusal to give communion to Barbara Johnson, one hopes that that action, combined with his apparent unwillingness to sit politely for her eulogy for her deceased mother and his inability to accompany the family to the cemetery for the final prayers were clues to some serious problems," she said.
"Hopefully, this whole incident will prompt diocesan authorities throughout the church to keep a more careful eye on their personnel. Quality control in ministry is hard to measure but such egregious actions surely meet the test for inadequacy," said Hunt, based at WATER, the Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual located in Silver Spring, Maryland.
WATER is a feminist educational center and social justice network.
More than two weeks ago, Barbara Johnson was denied communion during her mother's funeral Mass on Saturday, Feb. 25, when the presiding priest, Father Guarnizo, told her, "I cannot give you communion because you live with a woman, and in the eyes of the church that is a sin."
His denial stunned Johnson, a lifelong Catholic and former Catholic schoolteacher, who lives, in Washington, D.C., with a partner of 20 years.
Johnson has local ties here, having lived in Chicago for six years from 1986-1992.
For its part, the Washington, D.C., Archdiocese acknowledged in a statement that Guarnizo had acted inappropriately, saying, "Any issues regarding the suitability of an individual to receive communion should be addressed by the priest with that person in a private, pastoral setting."
The Washington archdiocesan policy of not withholding communion and for priests to counsel Catholics privately is similar to the rule in the Chicago archdiocese under leadership of Cardinal Francis George.
Johnson also received an apology through correspondence from Knestout.
"I am sorry that what should have been a celebration of your mother's life, in light of her faith in Jesus Christ, was overshadowed by a lack of pastoral sensitivity," the bishop wrote.
Altogether, the most hurtful of Guarnizo's actions was his not being present at the cemetery with the family for their mother's burial.
That is "most egregious and upsetting to us," said Johnson during a telephone interview.
"It wasn't my funeral, it was our mother's funeral. As her children who adore her, it was our responsibility to make sure she had a beautiful and holy funeral, a sacred ritual for her soul," Johnson explained.
Although Guarnizo refused her the Eucharist, Johnson in fact received communion from a lay minister, during the funeral Mass, she said.
Johnson voiced praise for Knestout's apology and LaHood's pastoral care.
Initially, Johnson "reached out to Father Marcel through e-mail," she said, but getting no reply, "I wrote to LaHood. He was loving, pastoral, compassionate and very kind in our subsequent telephone conversation."
Asked about her initial insistence on receiving an apology from Guarnizo, Johnson said, "I am done."
And yet, "I will always welcome a conversation with him, always," she said. "I have prayed that the two of us could have a conversation because I think we are more alike than different in our love for the Church."
"I am the kind of person who likes resolution," Johnson added. "I would cherish a direct, private conversation."
