Free Republic

A beloved music director at a Michigan catholic church was fired after an unknown source informed church officials of his same-sex marriage — sparking outrage from parishioners, with many protesting and some renouncing their membership over the termination. Fred Szczepanski was canned from his position at St. Francis Church in Traverse City on Oct. 18 after the church officials discovered he had a same-sex marriage ceremony to his longtime partner in Nevada in 2020, according to Traverse City Record-Eagle. Szczepanski, known by churchgoers as “Mr. Fred,” was confronted by Rev. Michael Lingaur after church leaders received a letter from an...

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — The longtime music director at a northern Michigan church said he was fired just a few months before retirement after officials learned that he was in a same-sex marriage, a dismissal that has angered members and led to sidewalk protests by the choir. “He’s extremely talented, he’s perfect on the piano, he has perfect pitch and because of him, I look forward to going to church every week,” said Bob Holden, a chorister at St. Francis Church in Traverse City. “I’m divorced. Do I get thrown out next?” Holden told the Traverse City Record-Eagle.