CatholicVoteAction.org

This is an extensive follow-up to the story I published yesterday about the desecration that took place in St. James Church in NYC on January 15th. This information has been cobbled together from the contributions of many readers who have helped me get to the bottom of this.

One reader says: “There was a second concert scheduled at St. James on January 30th. That concert has now been canceled, and according to the parish office, the concert organizers lied to the pastor about both the first and the second concerts.  The pastor, Father Walter Tonelotto, says he was misled.”

As I’ve written before, we Catholics and especially Catholics who work at parishes need to learn a lesson from this about keeping close watch over what is done in our churches. Outside groups should not be allowed into a Church without supervision! (It’s not like this was a quiet event.)

Another reader writes: “The group who deceived the parish, an outfit run by Ariel Panero, Less Artists More Condos, has been shut down and operated illegally with other venues before. This is a group that needs to be stopped, for they are deliberately misleading venue owners and then bragging about it.”

A third reader confirms: “Ariel Panero is the organizer and man responsible for misleading St. James Catholic Church in NYC. His organization is Less Artists More Condos and apparently they have been crashing other venues as well and misleading many.”

The original page on MetroMix New York I linked to has been removed, but you can still see it on the Google cache. Most of the videos are being removed from YouTube. Those responsible for this attack on a Church are quickly trying to hide the evidence of their misdeeds.

A local blogger, Zach Baron, who seems to have some association with the groups involved here, writes:

That said, respect is a two-way street, and those who flock here to tell us, say, that we should know better than to write about shows happening in various semi-unlicensed venues in Manhattan might also think about how bragging in public about desecrating churches is probably not the best plan for long term sustainability.

Manhattan is just about the most visible place in the world to do anything like this. So do it right or fully expect outrage from quarters whose very existence might be a complete surprise to you, right up until the exact moment they get you shut down.

Zach could obviously use some tips on how to communicate with the written word, but I think what he is trying to express is that what Ariel Panero and his friends at “Less Artists More Condos” did is probably illegal, and there will be consequences now that they have been discovered.

Zach said I called on my readers for “prayers in reparation for this outrage.” I did. But I also think legal action should be taken, if only deter future pranksters from trying this sort of thing. I hope the St. Thomas More Society gets involved.

Tito Edwards at the American Catholic has a very good update on what is being done by the pastor and the parish to begin making reparations for the harm sustained:

Father Tonelotto is deeply embarrassed and sorrowful for the turn of events.  He has written to the Archbishop Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York expressing his remorse by apologizing for this.  He also wants to apologize to the parish and everyone else that this has caused scandal to. Father Tonelotto recognizes what has happened, has taken responsibility and apologized for it. 

Update I: Father Walter Tonelotto will be holding a prayer vigil of reparation this Saturday (01-30-2010) at Saint James Church for what has occurred at the parish. If you are a parishioner or wish to join in this prayer vigil contact the parish here.

Update II: The Archdiocese affirmed the actions of Father Tonelotto’s resolutions to the situation.

I hope the Archdiocese also assists in pursuing legal action against the parties responsible for this deception and attack against Church property.

I will follow this story in the case of any important updates. But in the meantime please keep the pastor and parish in your prayers.

And pray for those who did this to our Church. I pray they do not know what they did.

update – to the foul-mouthed commenters who keep trying to post replies to this thread: don’t waste your time. I will publish nothing that is violent or hateful. The organization that setup this event lied to the pastor and told his staff that the second concert would be a benefit for Haiti victims. That’s really low. Nothing to brag about. I hope you don’t support events organized by these individuals again. Thank you.

Photo: Rebecca Smeyn