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"But Fr. Corapi—or “the Black SheepDog”—or whatever he wants to be called—chose not to stand firm in the face of what he claimed were false allegations.

Instead, he chose to defy authority and set up his own shop, claiming as a “sheep dog” to protect the flock whose leaders he is defying.

Unless something very improbable happens, he has thus abandoned his priesthood in a way that will from here on out bar him from serving as a Catholic priest.

Sad to admit it, Jimmy, but you got it right. He has gone off the deep end. Prayers up for him!

Of course, it is impossible to say whether the vague accusations are true, but Fr. Corapi’s behavior is certainly consistent with them being true.

By resigning, he removes the necessity for an investigation and he removes the necessity of releasing the results of that investigation. He thus retains his reputation.

This is, of course, a scurrilous interpretation, but one which will certainly be made by many. Fr. Corapi can easily answer this by specifically denying the accusations, which he has not done.

Padre Pio, please intercede for Fr. Corapi. You suffered harsh treatment that God allowed to hone you and purify you because of the great gifts you were given. Please use your gifts of powerful prayer now to assist Fr. Corapi in his time of need.

St. John Vianney, patron of priests, please intercede as well for this priest.

Mary, Mother of priests, please pray for him.

Amen

So the embrace of the “black sheep” label is itself disturbing . . . and unusual . . . a symbol of a “rebel” or “renegade” mindset. Then there’s the “sheep dog” part. And this is really disturbing. Even moreso than the former.
The job of a sheep dog, of course, is to herd sheep—to keep them from (get this) straying from the fold and to make them go where the shepherd wants and keep them safe from danger.
Those are obviously pastoral functions—in the literal sense. A pastor (Latin, “shepherd”) employs sheep dogs to help him in his job protecting and guiding the sheep and maintaining the integrity of the flock.
By embracing the image of a sheep dog, Fr. Corapi thus announces his intention—despite his public abandonment of the priesthood—to continue in some form of pastoral ministry. It may not be priestly—he may not be celebrating the sacraments—but he still sees himself as involved in pastoral work.

Jimmy Akin gives an excellent analysis of the situation. To quit on the anniversary of his ordination! How many times over the years have we heard him relate the joy of that day. He was ordained by Pope John Paul II at the Vatican.

Something is very wrong with this scenario.

I disagree with Akin's analysis. As a matter of fact, I think it's shameful that the Register even allowed it to be printed.

Maybe the handle of "Black SheepDog" is a little weird - but it hardly requires the amount of analysis that Akin gave to it. Most of his 'analysis' involves reading into it interpretations that may or may not be true.

What Akin would have done better analyzing would be the problems with the process against priests who are accused of misconduct. As it is, the bishops have implemented a shameful policy, and nobody is willing to speak up and tell them they are wrong.

Akin says:
I am not in any way unsympathetic to falsely accused priests or priests who feel that the need to be more stringent safeguards against false accusations. In fact, if Fr. Corapi were innocent (as he may be) then he could have chosen to make himself a test case to get better safeguards enacted. (After all, that’s something only an innocently accused priest can do; a guilty priest cannot expect such since the truth against him has come out).

Akin misses the point. Fr. Corapi was never going to get a chance at being a test case; instead, he was going to be put on ice indefinitely. I trust that his Canon and Civil lawyers have done a sufficiently good job in counseling him and demonstrating that he has no possibility of justice under the current system.

Fr. Corapi has not been in great health (partly because of his wild youth), and he may not have that many years left. It seems to me that he has chosen to continue sharing the Gospel in whatever means he can in the years he has left.

I am a seminarian - and to be frank, the prospect of possibly being caught in a situation like this scares me. One accusation - even a false one - can spell the end of a priest's ministry, and he has little to no recourse, and comes out of it without even having his good name.

This will not change unless laypeople start to step up and challenge the bishops to find an appropriate balance between justice for those who are genuinely victims of priestly misconduct, and justice for the accused priests (particularly if they are innocent). The priests can't do it, it needs to be the laypeople to respectfully step up and speak out.

I disagree. For too long there was a heavy veil of secrecy that allowed pervert priests to be shuffled about, evil bishops to suppress good and holy priests, and in general allowed evil to fester in the Church.

Fr. Corapi wouldn’t participate. Rather than sit silently for years, possibly decades, leaving the faithful to wonder, he opened up the process (his perspective, but I trust him more than I do most American bishops) and wouldn’t play ball. He absolutely burned bridges, but I think he did the right thing.

He never once spoke out against the Church, he spoke out against the corruption that has been allowed to fester in secret. And it’s about time someone did. Sunlight is exact what the Church needs, especially when dealing with accusations against priests.

Jesus. High Priest

We thank you, God our Father, for those who have responded to your call to priestly ministry.

Accept this prayer we offer on their behalf: Fill your priests with the sure knowledge of your love.

Open their hearts to the power and consolation of the Holy Spirit.

Lead them to new depths of union with your Son.

Increase in them profound faith in the Sacraments they celebrate as they nourish, strengthen and heal us.

Lord Jesus Christ, grant that these, your priests, may inspire us to strive for holiness by the power of their example, as men of prayer who ponder your word and follow your will.

O Mary, Mother of Christ and our mother, guard with your maternal care these chosen ones, so dear to the Heart of your Son.

Intercede for our priests, that offering the Sacrifice of your Son, they may be conformed more each day to the image of your Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Saint John Vianney, universal patron of priests, pray for us and our priests

This icon shows Jesus Christ, our eternal high priest.

The gold pelican over His heart represents self-sacrifice.

The border contains an altar and grapevines, representing the Mass, and icons of Melchizedek and St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney.

Melchizedek: king of righteousness (left icon) was priest and king of Jerusalem. He blessed Abraham and has been considered an ideal priest-king.

St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests.

Jimmy, of all people shouldn’t judge; he’s been on the other side and knows it’s no picnic. The black sheep title could easily be his past.

Obviously, he hasn’t spoken to others in Santa Cruz who witnessed the threats from her way back.

I would have more respect if he asked him in person and didn’t speculate. Has he read the book? Does he know exactly what happened?

We don’t need Satan, those ‘closest’ to you twist the knife expertly.