Fr. Altier Update

I am not very familiar with the situation that has developed around Fr. Altier of the diocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis–in significant measure because many of the details have not been publicly announced, and I can’t vouch for the information that is currently being reported, but a reader writes:

Father Altier from St. Agnes in Saint Paul and the parish priest,  Father Weizbacher are being moved out of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul- Mpls as of June 17.

It was announced today at morning mass.

You heard it here first.

Unless you heard it elsewhere.

Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live."

53 thoughts on “Fr. Altier Update”

  1. Oh dear. I feel sad for the parishioners of St. Agnes (but very happy for whoever else gets Fr Altier).

  2. The KC-St. Joseph Diocese has been needing rehabilitation for years. But much needs to be done. I went to a mass a couple of Sundays ago at a church in St. Joseph, with people swaying and clapping to an insultingly ’60s-esque musical version of the Gloria. The church allows laying on of hands and laymen conferring “blessings”. The young assistant pastor there ate Cracker Jack during a homily one week. Lay people who, it seems to me, seem to be pining for the Kumbaya era, appear to have too much control. My wife reported a guest priest delivered a homily there, not refuting the Da Vinci Code tripe but, rather, not denying that Jesus and Mary Magdalene had a “rather human relationship.” My wife, who heard this “homily” at that mass with our 12-yeaer-old son, reported this guy to the pastor, with, apparently, no action taken. My wife and son left the mass after the homily and were quite shaken by it.
    From the pulpit, lessons tend to deal with generalities and not concrete lessons from the Gospel that apply to real situations and issues we face. There are no reminders, that I’m aware of, that attendees who are not in the state of Grace, should not receive Holy Communion, nor are there noticeable calls to regular confession. Of course, confession lines on Saturdays are sparse.
    It’s not limited to this one church. There are five churches in St. Joseph. Only one even approaches “orthodox”. I pray Bishop Finn changes things radically in St. Joseph, as well as Kansas City.
    I’m not condemining anybody; I’m simply reporting my own observations and sense of outrage, as a defender of my Church. I’m tired of trying to explain to my son why people insist on playing fast and loose with the Holy Mass — changing prayers, omitting others, not taking tougher stances from the pulpit. I don’t expect perfection; I expect honest effort at orthodoxy.

  3. Wow! I wonder which diocese they are going to? Wouldn’t be surprised if it is Bruskewicz’s (sp?)!

  5. This is truely a sad event for St.Agnes and for St.Paul and Minneapolis. Fr. Wielzbacher and Fr.Altier are good, holy priests and will be greatly missed. It comes as a great shock to me as I sometimes frequent St.Agnes for a Mass or confession. Please pray for the parish of St.Agnes, her patron will watch over her and Our Lord will most surely protect one of His gems of the Archdiocese. Pray for the good Fathers, for the parishoners and for Archbishop Harry Flynn.

  6. How does a Bishop “move” one of his priests “out” of his diocese? Aren’t they incardinated there?
    Somebody should ask Fr. Zuhlsdorf…

  8. According to sources at the Archdiocese, they are being moved to other parishes and ministries within the Archdiocese.

  10. I read on Spiritdaily.org this statement:
    Report: controversial priest Fr. Altier reassigned as nursing home chaplain
    That is all that it said, but it may be a rumor…
    I love that priest!!!

  11. That is tough. But look at the bright side: no matter what, the influence that St. Agnes has had on the Archdiocese, sacred music, the Reform of the Reform, pro-life, vocations, the Catholic Press, devotions, etc will be felt for many years. Hopefully, Archbishop Flynn will assign a new pastor to Saint Agnes who will continue the rich traditions that have served the Church well during the many years of chaos after the 2nd Vatican Council. There are many sons of Saint Agnes who are priests in St.Paul-Minninapolis who would love to return to St. Agnes.

  12. wow…seems the diocese cant have faithful priests. I remember when Fr Corapi came into our diocese abd taught the catechism. The priests were threatening locking the church doors if he didnt stop. I suppose the Bishop in St Paul will find someone to his liking. A nursing home chaplain? What a waste of gifts.

  14. Why is a nursing home chaplain a waste of gifts? God will help Father Altier to continue in faithfulness, the elderly will have a wise and compassionate chaplain to bring Jesus in Word and Eucharist, and the Archdiocese will be blessed by God. Father Altier showed us all how to be holy in difficult circumstances by being obedient. Let us be obedient ourselves and praise and trust God for what He is doing in the Archdiocese through Father Altier and Archbishop Flynn.

  15. As a parishoner at St. Agnes, I just wanted to include my two cents’ worth, just to give some perspective and add a comment.
    First, for those who aren’t familiar with the priests, it should be pointed out that Fr. Welzbacher is in his upper 70s, near 80, and although he’s a very vital man he has had a very stressful tenure at St. Agnes as well. He’s had to deal with problems at the school (teachers who didn’t seem to think that passing along the Catholic faith was an important part of their job, having to select two superintendents), and the subsequent shortfall in funding when some of the parents took their children out of the school. His assignment, I believe he once mentioned, was for five years, and if he’s not there he would be soon. So while it’s tempting (and, for all I know, correct) to read something into this, I would caution that we cannot be absolutely sure that this is the case (unless a reader out there has more information than I do, which is completely possible – Michael, for example).
    There are some excellent priests in this archdiocese, and I don’t think anyone should assume that the new pastor at St. Agnes (should these rumors turn out to be true) will not continue the tradition. For all the criticism of Archbishop Flynn, he does have a reputation for making good appointments.
    That said, I should add this caveat: the St. Agnes schools have opted out of the TAT sex education program. (Archbishop Flynn has given all parishes this authority, and Fr. W exercised it.) If one wanted to be suspicious, you could suggest that a new pastor might be inclined to reverse this decision, and that this thinking could enter into the equation when the archbishop makes the assignment. Again, I am not suggesting this myself, merely pointing out the obvious.
    At this point I am not too concerned, nor do I think we should necessarily read bad news into this. However, as I’ve mentioned, the way things can be in this archdiocese I’m perfectly willing to believe that my perception can change based on any new information.

  17. I have to say, the nursing home (IF that is the where Fr.Altier is going) would be deeply blessed. Father has said frequently how sad it is that so many of the dying do not recieve :Last Rites, he would be there to give an invaluable Sacrament to many who are in need of it. And, I completely agree with Mr. Hadley. Everything will work out to the Glory of God, even if we never see it.

  18. I’m not allowed to name names, but I heard from reliable sources that St. Agnes has NOTHING to worry about….an awesome pastor is coming.

  19. Let’s hope this happens to us in Los Angeles , when Cardinal Roger Mahoney retires . Let’s pray for a true and sincere renewal. Amen!

  20. I pray daily that the Church turns out more loyal and holy young men as priests. In our parish our pastor while in the seminary, was the only one studying from our diocese. He was ordained only about 5 years ago. Saturday 5 men are being ordained, and another 13 are in seminary.
    Even my son who was captain of the football team, the homecoming king, captain of his hockey team and the class clown, visited Rome and went from attending Mass when his schedule allowed, to going to Mass almost daily. He is going back to Rome to study general studies, and is also discerning a vocation. It was the parish pastor that took a group of young people to Rome. Maybe our diocese will turn out so many priests we will need to send them to other dioceses. Anything is possible with prayer.

  21. Mike,
    I think you probably have better information on this than I do – nonetheless I thought I’d pass along this story from a local blog and ask whether, given what you know, this should be given any kind of reliable speculation.
    If you’re concerned about compromising the privacy of your source, please feel free to email me your opinions.
    Julia – thanks much for the kind words!

  22. whoops – don’t know what happened to my comment – anyway, I wanted to pass along comments from this local blog and ask whether or not you think this is a credible source. If you’re concerned about compromising the confidentiality of your information, please feel free to email me.
    Julia – thanks much for the kind word!

  23. Michelle:
    This concurs with what I was told. And, for whatever faults the archbishop may have, appointments are his strength. Oh yeah, and he has populated this archdiocese with young, fervent priests!

  24. Thanks, Mike. I believe it might have been Fr. Neuhaus who referred to Archbishop Flynn as a “good hire, bad fire” type of manager. And you’re right; there are many outstanding, orthodox young priests in this archdiocese. We don’t sugarcoat what’s going on here by any means, but neither should we wring our hands in complete despair.

  25. Fr. Randal Kasel – currently at St. Raphael’s and St. Agnes-grown – is going to St. Agnes. The parish staff was informed yesterday of his departure.

  26. Fr. Kasel is a good man and, I believe, a good priest. I think we at St. Agnes will be very pleased to have him back. I also think the priest who is rumored to be appointed as pastor (I won’t include the name yet, as I haven’t seen it confirmed anywhere) to be a good choice, although if anyone has additional information it would be welcome.

  28. Fr. Altier is now going to be ASSISTANT Chaplain at a nursing home. This for a faithful orthodox priest who preaches the true word in a diocese that is running amok with heresy, homosexuality, etc. Yet those priest are able to continue taking the faithful down the wrong path. Does AB Flynn not read the Bible. It would be better for a millstone to be around his neck than to lead a little one astray. And we are the little ones. I pray for him and the diocese daily.
    Fr. Altier is one of the most orthodox, faithful, and obedient priests I have ever met. I consider myself a spiritual daughter. He is in good company with St. John Vianney, St. Joseph Cupertino, St. Pio, St. Don Bosco, etc who were all persecuted and now are Saints. Fr. Altier is a saint as I know I could not be obedient to an Archbishop who is not obedient (even though Cardinal Arize told him he couldn’t give the Eucharist to the rainbow sashers he did and still does. In fact they publically thank him for his support). The Holy Spirit is working in Fr. Altier.

  30. Maryanne,
    Do you think that any of those saints in there time on earth would have been disobedient or recommended disobedience?
    I know very little about Fr. Altier but from what I gather so far he is a striving to be holy by being obedient. Please let me know if I am not perceiving him correctly.
    Take care and God bless,
    Inocencio
    J+M+J

  31. Our Lady is watching over Fr. Altier. Now he has time to write a book and exercise to lose some weight.
    Smile, my money is on the Blessed Virgin Mary. I think she wants her man to take a break and gain strength for future battles.
    There are others who now must step up to fight today’s battle and that battle should NOT be to keep Fr. Altier in the center of the fight.

  32. Dear Jimmy and Friends in Christ,
    Greetings. I am very perturbed that Father Altier has been literally banished into the wilderness to an “Old Folks Home” but obviously there is little anyone can do since as Laity we are powerless.
    All we can do is pray for Father Altier.
    I was wondering if anyone can help me with this “Humble Request”.
    Do you all know where I can get or download the Audio Files (D.S.S.) Talks given by Father Altier on Topics such as Our Lady, The Holy Eucharist, Mental Prayer, The Saints, Our World Today, The Spiritual Life, Lent, etc.
    They were till this past Sunday on the Parent Directory of http://www.desertvoice.org and then all of them were removed within a few hours about 50 Files or more.
    Each Audio File was around 3 MB or a little less.
    They were first posted by Ken and Elizabeth Schwab O.C.D.S. who run “A Voice in the Desert” from February 2006 under the Title “Spiritual Presentations and Talks by Father Robert Altier.
    Does any one know of any Individual or Group that has a Mirror Version of these Talks or just anyone who has downloaded these talks period.
    These are not the Homilies that I am referring to but Audio Talks that are 1 Hour in Length.
    I would be grateful for any response that I can get from anyone.
    Prayers for Father Altier and for the Parish of Saint Agnes.

  33. LETTER WRITER FROM SOUTH ASIA :
    I was fortunate enough to download a few of the talks you are interested in. You can contact me through my URL. I manage the group so send me an email that way.

  34. Hey LETTER WRITER FROM SOUTH ASIA.
    If you Google “Wayback Machine”, and then type in desertvoice.org into the url section, you can still find many homilies. God bless you and keep the faith. We all should recall Father Altiers lessons on the incredible redemptive value of suffering. This truly IS a suffering and all of us here at St. Agnes have been deeply wounded. We will unite that wound to the sufferings of Christ. Father Altier and the Church will prevail. He WILL be back.

  35. I LOVE Father Altieri, and one reason is that he is the only priest I have ever heard do a sermon on the time when Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him —- and gets it right. I have asked on blogs before what people make of the fact that Jesus uses “agape” the first two times, while Jesus answers, “Lord, I’m your best friend” (using “philia”)and finally Jesus asks, “Peter, are you my best friend?”
    People always reply that it has NO significance; these are merely two words that mean the same thing. But of course they DO NOT AT ALL. Agape is something entirely new, while the Greeks already had the concept of philia. And why would Jesus use these different words?
    Fr.A did a homily in May 2002 on this subject. May 17, I think.

  36. Dear Chris,
    Greetings from Bombay. I consider myself to be a Spiritual Son of Saint Francis Xavier — as I am originally from the Former Portuguese Colony of Goa on the West Coast of India.
    I am a Conservative Catholic Christian and Father Altier through his Homilies literally turned me life around some years back, when I was on the verge of becoming a “Pentecostal” as a result of some terrible experiences in Religious Life in the United States.
    But, I am quite positive that you are confusing these “Talks” that I spoke about in my message with the Homilies.
    These are not Homilies that were transcribed and are available at the Archive WayBack Machine or with the Mirror Site –http://www.desertvoice.excerptsofinri.com
    These are only Audio Talks which were posted by this couple and were not transcribed as they are 1 hour in length — they were given by Father Altier whenever he was invited to give a Talk on some issue or the other in any part of the United States.
    These Talks cannot be obtained at all from “The Wayback Machine” as these Talks were recently posted only in Feb 2006.
    To make matters worse, they are in D.S.S. Format only.
    I doubt you may have seen them. In any case, many thanks for your message.
    Although, I have never heard these talks — I strongly believe that these talks are out of this world based solely on my opinion regarding Father Altier’s Homilies which I have read.
    If you click on this Link, you will know what I am talking about.
    http://www.desertvoice.org/Talks.html
    This is something quite recent.
    Prayers for Father Altier and for all of you at Saint Agnes. I strongly believe that this was an extremely smart move by Archbishop Flynn to banish him to this nursing home as a Friend who lives in Atlanta, just spoke to me last week about a certain “Petition” which was being circulated by an Orthodox Group of Catholics called “Concerned Catholics of America” and their objective was to put some sort of pressure on Folks like Archbishop Flynn and the Apostolic Nuncio to restore Father Altier’s Online Ministry asap.
    And, now this has happened. Well, Fr. Altier is truly in the Desert in more ways than one.

  37. Dear Chris,
    The latest message that I have posted on Jimmy’s blog is from me — The Letter Writer from South Asia.
    I only made a mistake in not posting my name.
    Today, is the Feast or Solemnity of Our Lady of Fatima. Father Altier, was a great devotee of Our Lady of Fatima.
    Let us specially ask her to intercede for him today.

  38. Dear Teresa,
    Many Thanks for your message.
    I will be in touch with you today.
    Are you also from the Parish of Saint Agnes ?

  39. Dear LETTER WRITER FROM SOUTH ASIA
    If you click on my name below, you could send me you email address and we could keep in touch. I may be able to dig up some talks that you may be interested in.

  40. Dear Teresa,
    Did you receive my email yesterday regarding “The Audio Talks” of Father Altier that I am interested in ?
    I say that because, I sent you yet another email today and it bounced back saying that I cannot send you an email unless I become a Member of your Group ?
    Let me know what I should do and whether you have received an email fro me.

  41. Here is a part of a Father Altier sermon from June 29,2001.
    As we celebrate these two great saints today, Peter and Paul, the Church gives to us these readings that make it clear that all the extraordinary things they did, the life they lived, and the preaching task was done through them by the Lord. We hear, for instance, of Saint Peter in prison and how the angel of the Lord comes to Peter and frees him from the prison so he can go out and continue to preach. We hear Saint Paul talking about how he has been poured out like a libation and the time of his dissolution is near. But then he tells us:
    “The Lord has stood by my side and He has strengthened me so that the preaching task might be completed and all the nations might hear the Gospel.”
    Then the very important thing that we must all keep in mind is the point Saint Paul makes towards the end of the reading we heard today, because no matter what happens in our lives, remember that everything is part of God’s Providence – everything.
    It does not matter how good or bad it may seem, every little minute detail and every huge event are all part of God’s Providence.
    Saint Paul tells us: “The Lord will continue to rescue me from all attempts to do me harm, and will bring me safe to His heavenly kingdom.” If we just simply trust that, imagine what God could do through us if we trust that God is right there by our side.

  42. Hi,
    I just wanted to comment on something else. I met with Father Altier last year for some spiritual advice which was very helpful. I had met him the year before at a friend´s house. He was to have done a house blessing but he did an exorcism instead. I got the impression that he could see a lot more there than we could. I felt he could look right through me and see the state of my soul. That look has stayed with me wondering what he saw. I didn´t ask as that would be curiosity.
    Then that look again, when I met with him for spiritual advice, brought me to tears instantly as I felt I was in the presence of a holy man. That had never happened to me before.

  43. Letter Writer,
    Sorry I didn’t get your emails at my group. I posted my regular email address on this post.
    For all who are interested, here is a link to several talks by Fr.Altier. They are not the same talks from desert voice website except the St.Michael one. This list is fortunately MP3 format. http://trueteaching.net/ You can also get the DSS player download here if you need it.

  44. I have all 16 1-hour talks (in MP3 format) that Fr. Altier gave to the retreat in Wyoming. These 16 are all on Our Lady. I also have a handful of other talks (from conferences) converted to MP3.
    These talks have not yet been posted at the http://www.CatholicAudio.us website. You can find Fundamentals, the Marriage series and a couple of other talks there. You can order the DVDs from Fr. Altiers recent 3 one-hour Marriage talks at http://www.catholicparents.org for only $15.

  45. Dear C S P B,
    If I get in touch with you by email, would it be possible for you to send me all of the 16 1- Hour Talks on Our Lady which are (in MP3 format) that Father Altier gave to the retreat in Wyoming.
    I would be extremely grateful if you could also send me via email the handful of other talks (from conferences) converted to MP3 that you have.
    Let me know if I can email you so that you can send these Talks to me.
    Many Thanks for your post.
    In Christ,

  49. It has not been mentioned that St. Agnes has a new pastor, Fr. John Ubel. Fr. Ubel is very orthodox and, at 44, is likely to be at St. Agnes for a while.

  51. 🙂 There is just the slimmest possibility that the Lord wants Fr. Altier to minister to His beloved elderly. I LNA’d at a Catholic nursing home, and trust me, one can NOT have too many priests there. We who are still ambulatory have a marvelous selection of churches and priests, day in and day out; the elderly in nursing homes who are trying to make their way holily to the Lord, have only one option.
    Obedience is everything. Perhaps, too, this is what the Holy Spirit wants to show. It is hard, but as a beloved transferred priest said to us as we almost sobbed during his last Mass (and as he nearly did as well), “Remember, now.. it is the same God Who sent me here Who is sending me onward.”

  52. Yes, Obedience is everything, and the Lord will bring a greater good of this, and since the silenceing of Father Altier, even more know of him and are reading and listening to his homilies, and are seeing truth and seeing the Holy Catholic Church in a new and wonderous ways. We must do our part, as Fr. Altier has preach to us, WE MUST PRAY, to become closer to Our Lord and live a life of holiness, to become little so in turn to be made strong.

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