Letter to the editor: Diocese can’t remove priest’s faith, love, courage
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I have been a parishioner at Immaculate Conception Church in Irwin for 26 years, 19 of which Father John Moineau has been the pastor.
This is the same Father John who has been vilified by the Diocese of Greensburg since the end of May for potentially creating a “conspiracy” to cover up the criminal background of a former church cemetery employee.
It’s the same Father John who prayed with me after the grand jury report of 2018 revealed that over 300 priests in six Pennsylvania dioceses had sexually assaulted over 1,000 children, with some of those priests conveniently removed from their churches to protect their privacy.
And this is the same Father John who was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer three years ago, a dreadful disease that still failed to prevent him from conducting his priestly duties for two parishes, sometimes with his chemo pump visible under his vestments.
But even more crushing was the diocese’s attempts these last several months to seemingly remove Father John as if he never existed for what ultimately resulted from an unintentional clerical error that forced him to immediately resign as pastor and where even a prayer request supporting him on the Queen of Angels Catholic School marquee was deleted.
But the diocese can never remove the power of Father John’s faith, love and courage that will forever remain in the hearts of his parishioners. His reputation will not be tarnished, unlike our respect for the Diocese of Greensburg.
Rosemary Eizenhafer
Penn Township, Westmoreland County