Shares outcome of canonical proceedings involving Father Patrick Hoare
CHARLOTTE — Bishop Michael Martin, OFM Conv., issued the following statement May 29 to members of St. Matthew Parish about their former pastor, Father Patrick Hoare, who has been on administrative leave since December 2019:
Dear St. Matthew parishioners,
I am writing to share news about Father Patrick Hoare and the pastoral leadership of St. Matthew Parish.
As Bishop Peter Jugis shared with you in 2020, Father Hoare was removed as your pastor after the diocese’s Lay Review Board (LRB) reviewed specific claims of boundary violations with minors by Father Hoare and concluded that they had a semblance of truth. The LRB is an advisory group mandated by particular ecclesiastical law and its members are appointed by the diocesan bishop. The LRB is to independently evaluate claims of misconduct by clergy and other diocesan employees and to make recommendations to the bishop based on its findings.
Father Hoare appealed the decision to remove him as pastor to the Holy See in Rome, as was his right under canon law, and he has remained on administrative leave as his recourse moved through a canonical process over several years. That process prevented the Diocese of Charlotte
from appointing a new pastor for St. Matthew, and Father John Allen has graciously served as Parochial Administrator since 2019.The canonical appeals process in Rome recently concluded with a finding by the Holy See that Bishop Jugis’ removal of Father Hoare as pastor was in accord with canon law. As a result, I will be appointing a new pastor of St. Matthew when priest assignments are finalized in the coming days.
At Bishop Jugis’ request, the LRB in 2020 evaluated three complaints against Father Hoare of boundary issues with minors that were reported to have been observed in group settings at St. Matthew and St. John Neumann parishes. The complaints involved a hug, rubbing the shoulders or
abdomen of a minor, and being “very touchy.” The LRB recommended that Father Hoare remain out of ministry until he underwent an assessment and education program to address any issues identified. Since that time, Father Hoare has been engaged in this process as recommended.As part of its scope, the LRB also examined two allegations against Father Hoare that were said to have occurred 25 years earlier in Pennsylvania, before he became a priest. Father Hoare denies those claims, both of which involved accusations of acts of inappropriate behavior with
relatives when he was in his teens or early 20s. The LRB concluded that while some of those claims appeared credible, the precise ages of those involved could not confidently be ascertained based on the evidence presented to the LRB and recollections of people’s ages and events decades
earlier. Pennsylvania authorities also investigated the abuse claims in 2020 and reported to the diocese that they were unable to pursue charges.I am aware that this process has been long and difficult for many. However, the faithful can be confident that in matters involving the welfare of minors we do not take shortcuts or risks. For this reason, in considering how Father Hoare might best serve the diocese in the future, I will take into consideration Father Hoare’s satisfactory completion of the recommended assessment and training, along with consultation with diocesan leaders and the LRB.
In closing, I want to thank parishioners, clergy and lay leaders of St. Matthew for your commitment to living and deepening your faith, and to building your community as this matter moved to resolution. I am equally committed to appointing a pastor who will inspire and support you, as we open a new chapter at St. Matthew. Please keep everyone involved in this matter in your prayers and know that you all remain in mine.
Peace,
+ Most Reverend Michael T. Martin, OFM Conv.
Bishop of Charlotte
MOORESVILLE — A new chapel is being designated for followers of the Traditional Latin Mass, marking the final phase of the Diocese of Charlotte’s implementation of rules issued by Pope Francis in 2021.
Bishop Michael Martin is designating the chapel as the new spiritual home for Traditional Latin Mass supporters who have been worshiping at churches in Charlotte, Greensboro and Tryon. This community follows the traditional form of the Mass, using prayers and a liturgical calendar that pre-date the reforms of the Second Vatican Council.
The yet-to-be-named chapel is located at 757 Oakridge Farm Hwy. in Mooresville, adjacent to Curlin Commons, the diocese’s affordable senior apartment community.
The diocese owns the property, which includes a 5,000-square-foot church that seats 345 worshipers and a separate school/gym building.
The diocese’s Construction and Real Estate Office is renovating the church building to serve as the new chapel, with upgrades including a new ceiling, flooring, lighting, refitting the sanctuary for Catholic worship, installing pews with kneelers, adding a second restroom, and repainting the entire space.
The $700,000 renovation is being fully funded by the diocese at no cost to the Traditional Latin Mass group, which according to diocesan officials numbers about 1,000 regular attendees among the diocese’s Catholic population of approximately 565,000.
The new chapel is part of changes announced May 23 by Bishop Martin to complete the diocese’s implementation of Pope Francis’ 2021 instruction that reintroduced limits on the Traditional Latin Mass in dioceses around the world.
“Traditionis Custodes” (“Guardians of the Tradition”) declared the liturgical books promulgated after the Second Vatican Council to be “the unique expression of the ‘lex orandi’ (law of worship) of the Roman Rite” and directed bishops not to establish new parishes or groups devoted to the old liturgy. While parish churches may not offer the Traditional Latin Mass, the instruction does allow bishops to “designate one or more locations where the faithful adherents of these groups may gather for the eucharistic celebration.”
In 2023, Bishop Peter Jugis called for “a smooth and orderly transition to the new course charted by Traditionis Custodes” to foster unity in the Church. Latin Masses at five parishes with smaller numbers of followers were discontinued, while four others with more participants – St. Ann and St. Thomas Aquinas in Charlotte, St. John the Baptist in Tryon, and Our Lady of Grace in Greensboro – were granted a temporary extension by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. That extension expires this year.
Bishop Martin’s directive ends use of the Traditional Latin Mass at all parish churches effective July 8 and sets aside the Mooresville chapel for its celebration.
Bishop Martin said Mooresville was chosen for several key reasons. It lies between the diocese’s two largest population centers – Charlotte and the Triad region – making it geographically strategic. Additionally, because Traditionis Custodes restricts the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass in parish churches, the diocese needed to find a suitable location not already designated as a parish. Mooresville was the only place where the diocese already owned an existing church building that met these criteria.
Since renovations will not be finished by July 8, diocesan staff are preparing the school building on the Mooresville property as a temporary worship space until the chapel is ready this fall. The property was the original site of Christ the King High School when it opened in 2011.
When the chapel is finished, diocesan officials said, it will be consecrated for Catholic worship and appropriately appointed for celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass.
Bishop Martin will also appoint a chaplain to serve the faithful and celebrate two Sunday Masses and Holy Day Masses using the 1962 Roman Missal at the chapel. If the chapel is not large enough to accommodate worshipers at two Masses each Sunday, an additional Mass could be considered at that location, Bishop Martin said.
The move to comply with Traditionis Custodes comes after numerous conversations with Traditional Latin Mass supporters and clergy who offer the old liturgy, as well as letters and emails from the laity, Bishop Martin said. Efforts to complete the implementation of Traditionis Custodes were begun earlier this year and shared with the diocese’s consultative bodies, he said.
In his letter announcing the changes, Bishop Martin wrote, “It is my heartfelt desire and prayer that this implementation of Traditionis Custodes will further ‘promote the concord and unity of the Church’ among the People of God in the Diocese of Charlotte so that, as Jesus prayed to His Father, we ‘may all be one’ (John 17:21).
— Patricia L. Guilfoyle
Learn more
Bishop Michael Martin will host a meeting about the new chapel at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 24, in the Hall on the chapel property for anyone who would like to visit the site and learn more about this transition. The chapel is located at 757 Oakridge Farm Hwy. in Mooresville.