A priest in Chicago has resigned after the archdiocese found he misused parish funds for “personal expenses,” Cardinal Blaise Cupich told parishioners this month.
Cupich told St. John Henry Newman Parish in Evanston that the archdiocese had begun a review of the parish’s finances on March 30 amid “serious questions” about the parish’s “fiscal administration.”
The prelate said in a letter to the parish dated April 10 that the review found that Father Kenneth Anderson “violated several core archdiocesan policies related to the proper practice of good stewardship of parish resources.”
The reported violations included “the creation and maintenance of a separate bank account into which he deposited substantial parish funds,” Cupich said.
Some of those funds were used “to cover costs unrelated to the needs of the parish, including his personal expenses.”
Cupich said Anderson resigned after the report’s findings were presented. Priest also “accepted (Cupich’s) instruction that, when a full accounting was completed, he would be compensated for any funds not explicitly identified to cover his personal expenses.”
The archdiocese did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the total amount of money allegedly misused in the parish.
Cupich said in his letter to Father Wayne Watts, pastor of Sts. Joseph and Francis Xavier Parish in nearby Wilmette oversaw the administration of St. John Henry Newman Parish’s finances during the review process.
The archbishop further said that he has asked the Archdiocesan Placement Board to recommend a new priest for the parish by July 1.
Retired pastor Father Gerald Gunderson will serve as parish administrator until a new pastor is hired, Cupich said.
The parish was formed in 2022 following the merger of St. Athanasius and Joan of Arc appeared as part of the archdiocesan Renew My Faith campaign.
