p/c sjvcenter.org In Priest Psych Unit: Part 1,  I gave an introduction to what happens to Catholic priests who are sent to psychological behavioral centers.  Some men request a sabbatical there.  But other priests (usually the conservative ones) are sent there by a bishop to break them of their orthodoxy (usually hung on the red-herring of "rigorism" or "scrupulosity.") Today, I  interview a priest in the latter category. In the below interview, he will go by the pseudonym of "Fr. Paul." However, he is a friend of mine and he is a priest from a different diocese who was sent away for "treatment." Before this interview, let me give a [...]

p/c Globe photo/Lisa Kay, St. Luke Institute, Silver Spring, MD. Some priests were sent by their bishop to the funny-farm to heal them. Others were sent there to break them of their intransigent orthodoxy. By now, most American Catholics who are at least 30 years old know of one Catholic priest (or two) who has been sent away for "treatment" by the diocese.  If the priest was liked by the parish, most of the faithful remained hush-hush about why he got sent packing.   If he was a distrusted priest, well, lay-lips might be a little looser:  Was Father sent away for alcoholism?  Did he have a girlfriend?  Did he [...]