Area Pastor Placed On Administrative Leave

The Rev. Robert Finn said the Rev. Matthew Bartulica has been restricted from public ministry. He has been the pastor at St. Cyril Parish in Sugar Creek, Mo.

In a press release, the diocese said information came to the Ombudsman that prompted Finn and the Independent Review Board to “invoke a strict application of all diocesan policies and procedures.”

In the wake of the church’s recent sex scandal, Finn appointed the ombudsman as an independent public liaison and ombudsman to field and investigate any reports of suspicious or inappropriate behavior. The church said it would not comment about the nature of the information involving Bartulica until more facts were known.

Bartulica was ordained in the summer of 2010 and studied in Rome for a year before his appointment.

“He’s only been with us for a few months,” said Stan Silva, a member at St. Cyril Parish. “We understand this is his first time with a parish.”

Other parishioners said they liked their new priest but had been told he was sick.

“We got a surprise last weekend at church,” Silva said. “We got a letter from the bishop saying there was an investigation and he was being placed on administrative leave. And that’s all we know.”

Since 2002, the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph said it has spent $14.7 million on cases dealing with sex abuse by clergy.