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McKinney priest resigns amid questions of involvement with gay priest group
By Brandi Hart, McKinney Courier-Gazette
St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church will get a new pastor, after Father Arthur Mallison resigned from the church on Tuesday after the Dallas Catholic Diocese received complaints about his connection to a gay priest group.
Mallison is openly gay, said Annette Taylor, communications directors for the diocese. But like all Catholic priests, Mallison is required to be celibate.
Mallison's connection to the group was brought up by Barbara Kralis who wrote an article that was published on the Catholic Citizens of Illinois' Web site www.catholiccitizens.org on May 6. Kralis' article asked why the diocese would appoint Mallison to the St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church when he is openly gay, and has a connection to the St. Sebastian's Angel's gay priest group and its Web site.
Mallison began working in McKinney during the last several weeks. His resignation letter states that he resigned "with a heavy heart out of concern for the church because he didn't want to bring any scandal or harm to his parish community," Taylor said.
Mallison said that he did not want to create any divisiveness to the church, Taylor added.
The diocese received two letters from St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church parishioners who said they were concerned about Mallison's involvement with the gay priests' Web site, Taylor said. The diocese also received complaints about Mallison being appointed to St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church from people who live in several cities in California and Illinois, Taylor said.
Priests will fill in for masses and other services at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church until a permanent pastor is assigned, Taylor said.
Prior to working in McKinney, Mallison served as the pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Lancaster for 10 years. Parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi and St. Michael the Archangel churches have called the Dallas Catholic Diocese to offer their support for Mallison, Taylor said. Some parishioners of the St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church have said they would like Mallison to return to the church, Taylor said.
McKinney City Council Member Gilda Garza is a member of St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church and said on Wednesday that she hasn't heard any of the church's parishioners complain that Mallison was openly gay.
"I'm ashamed to tell you this, but I've been on vacation for two weeks and I haven't been to church. I didn't even get to meet him. Who would do a search like that on the Web on a priest? I guess that's the disadvantage of the Internet," Garza said.
Mallison did not return a message left at his office at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church on Monday about his involvement with the St. Sebastian's Angels group.
Contact staff writer Brandi Hart at hartb@acnpapers.com. To post a comment online, access this story at www.scntx.com.
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