Regarding the Trenton Diocese Statement

The charge that Religion News Service failed to do the necessary homework on accused Catholic priests is unfair and, frankly, untrue. The Diocese of Trenton has never specified any factual errors or misstatements in the article on the Rev. James Selvaraj. Instead, the Diocese has issued vague accusations that RNS "misunderstands" the Roman Catholic Church's rules.

Daniel Burke interviewed four canon lawyers for this story, each of whom provided the same information about church rules on accused priests, the process of incardination, and the options before Selvaraj as he seeks to regain his priestly faculties, reputation, and lost wages in the Diocese of Trenton. All said that the removal of Selvaraj's faculties by the Diocese of Trenton plants a black mark on his record and seriously impedes his desire to be a priest outside of the diocese.

The Diocese of Trenton has provided no evidence for its claim that Selvaraj was warned about his behavior several times before his priestly faculties were removed. In fact, in 2005, three weeks before Selvaraj was charged with endangering the welfare of a child, Trenton Bishop John Smith told Selvaraj that his petition to become a permanent priest in Trenton was in process and thanking him for his service in the Diocese.

The Diocese of Trenton was asked at least five times to comment on Selvaraj's case and each time declined. RNS spent more than two months reporting this story, and even held it for publication in the hopes that the diocese would comment. They declined each opportunity. RNS would gladly take the opportunity to speak to Bishop Smith on the record about Selvaraj, why he was removed from ministry, and any steps the bishop has taken to restore the priest's reputation.