Sioux City Diocese reveals list of 28 priests credibly accused of abusing minors

The Rev. Brad Pelzel, left, and Sioux City Diocese Bishop R. Walker Nickless listen to Mark Prosser, a member of the Diocesan Review Board, talk about a list of 28 priests credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors during a news conference Monday. 

SIOUX CITY -- Aiming to "shine a light" on its own "shameful history," the Diocese of Sioux City made public Monday the names of 28 priests credibly accused of sexually abusing more than 100 children while serving the Northwest Iowa diocese.

...

For months, a Diocesan Review Board and the diocese's law firm reviewed priest files dating to the diocese's founding in 1902. The first accusation deemed credible occurred in 1948, and the most recent in 1995, said Mark Prosser, a Review Board member who is also police chief in Storm Lake.

continue at Sioux City Journal

The titles of these articles is misleading(same with the Green Bay headlines), there are zero active priest credibly accused. I think this is the right move, to make progress on this issue that seems to never find a final resolution.  Yes, ambulance chasers are licking their chops but it's time to make zero tolerance mean something. 

Nickless noted none of the credibly accused priests currently serve in the ministry or are active with youth. All but six are deceased, and the survivors have been stripped of their ability to give communion, celebrate Mass or represent themselves as priests, the bishop said. 

Suit Sunday at Iowa church encourages men to wear Sunday best for Mass

photo: Catholic Globe

MALLARD, Iowa — If you decided to attend Mass at St. Mary Church in Mallard recently, your eye may have been drawn to six adult men in dress suits.

That’s because they are the Suit Sunday group.

However, it took a non-Catholic to spur this approach to Sunday-best attire, when informal — even quite casual — clothes are almost the norm for church attendees.

Vern Smith of Curlew, who had been attending the Methodist church, started going to Mass about 20 years ago when his son began serving Mass.

“It was just something I didn’t want to miss,” he told The Catholic Globe, newspaper of the Diocese of Sioux City.

Smith began noticing the men tended to wear suits on Easter and Christmas Eve, but not at the other Masses. It really struck Smith about three to five years ago when he saw a gentleman returning to his pew after receiving Communion.

continue at The Compass 

Love of baseball, chance to evangelize lead Iowa priest to do play-by-play

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — From the back, all the men in the press box at the Sioux City Explorers baseball game looked the same.

That is, until one swiveled in his seat to take a swig of his Pepsi and the white of a Roman collar appeared.

For the past decade, Fr. Craig Collison has been the play-by-play announcer for the Xs, whose home ballpark is Lewis and Clark Stadium in Sioux City.

“I got involved with the Xs, as I do with much of my public address activity, through a telephone call from them,” he explained. “It seems their regular public address announcer at the time got called up to active duty in the military and needed to leave. The general manager called me and asked if I would be interested in the position for the second half of their season that year and I consented.”

Fr. Collison commits to the home games of the Explorers for the season, with a particular caveat.

“The understanding is that anything with my priestly ministry comes first,” he told The Catholic Globe, newspaper of the Sioux City Diocese. “In other words, if someone would die and I would have a vigil service to lead and there happened to be a game scheduled, the Explorers would find a substitute for me at the game. The same holds true for weddings and wedding rehearsals that were scheduled.”

continue at Superior CH

Good article, worth the read.