Posted on 01/31/2005 2:53:57 PM PST by grania
WHDH-TVSWAMPSCOTT, Mass. -- The pastor of a Swampscott church has stepped aside after he was accused of propositioning a 12-year-old girl and her mother.
The accusation was leveled against him for alleged comments he made to the mother and her daughter at an Italian restaurant in Chelsea on Tuesday night.
The Archdiocese of Boston said in a statement yesterday that the resignation was accepted -- quote -- "in the interest of all parties involved."
The statement said that the resignation -- quote -- "does not represent any indication of Father Gillespie’s guilt or innocence."
Gillespie did not return a call from The Associated Press this morning.
The Boston Globe reported yesterday that the Suffolk district attorney was seeking the 55-year-old priest in connection with the allegation that he propositioned a girl and her mother.
The archdiocese said it learned of the matter Thursday night. (AP)
Hey--it's a step in the right direction. One of the intended targets was of legal age, and neither one was male.
As a Catholic, let me be the first to say adios padre!
Still, working this out case by case is taking entirely too long.
FYI
I guess having "altar girls" wouldn't solve anything.
What kind of moron tries to proposition a 12-year-old girl and her mother in the presence of the mother? Apart from the moral issue, this guy is too stupid to be a priest.
Of course, this is assuming that the charges are true. It remains to be seen, because the present rule agreed on in Dallas is to fire the priest first upon any charge at all, and then investigate afterwards. I have to say that this sounds more than a little bizarre.
My thoughts exactly. How often does propositioning a mother & her underage daughter work?
It's famous, in part, for the long running radio ads that proclaimed in a loud voice, "Tony Floramo's, where the MEAT falls off the BONE."
...What kind of moron tries to proposition a 12-year-old girl and her mother in the presence of the mother? Apart from the moral issue, this guy is too stupid to be a priest...
So, do you proposition the girl alone first, or the mother?
I'm new at this.
</ kidding >
If you don't try, you'll never find out.
My first thought was the incident involving a well known actor, a mother and a daughter at a Democratic National Convention a few years ago.
,,, yeah, right.
As the old joke (kinda) said about Carruthers: "At least he wasn't gay!"
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