Teri B.

Priest spent church money on secret family

RICHMOND, Virginia (AP) -- A retired Roman Catholic priest was sentenced to 63 months in prison for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from his parishioners, money he used in part to support his secret family.

Rodney Rodis, 51, pleaded guilty to mail fraud and money laundering in October in the theft of more than $600,000 in donations from St. Jude Church and Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Louisa County between 2002 and 2006.

U.S. District Judge Richard Williams on Thursday issued the maximum punishment under federal sentencing guidelines and gave Rodis credit for time already served.

The judge also ordered Rodis to repay the Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond more than $591,000 and required the Filipino native to meet with federal immigration officials for possible deportation after his prison term ends.

Before Williams handed down the sentence, Rodis recited a litany of apologies to his victims, including the Catholic church, his family and society in general.

"I hope that one day I'll be able to rectify my mistakes," he said.

Authorities said Rodis set up bank accounts and a post office box where he directed parishioners to send contributions. Rodis then transferred the money to his personal account, using it to support his family -- a wife and three children, whom he concealed from parishioners. He also wired money overseas to relatives who used it to buy real estate.

Robert J. Wagner, an attorney representing Rodis, asked for leniency because of his client's poor health, which includes prostate cancer and heart problems.

After the hearing, the priest who succeeded Rodis after his 2006 retirement said he wasn't convinced of the sincerity of his predecessor's apologies.

"He did this for five years, systematically, and in a very organized way," the Rev. Michael Duffy said. "Restitution is what we're after."

The_Heretic

This is why you never donate to a church. Instead, give yuor donations to charity organizations directly and only after having verified their background.

__________________
"Enough!!" -so rang Barack Obama's voice off the walls of Mile High Stadium

Veronica

Or maybe if priests were allowed to marry and paid for their services this would not have happened. The Catholic Church is toxic from its core. I was raised Catholic and know that you have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to question the core tenets of the religion.

The_Heretic

Actually allowing priests to marry wouldn't make one dent. in sects where they are allowed these sorts of scenarios come up just as often. In some cases it's the priest who has one family and is quietly supporting another that the first has no knowledge of.

__________________
"Enough!!" -so rang Barack Obama's voice off the walls of Mile High Stadium

Vicariously I

But those are not the rules and God will smote thee for committing such a sin on the church.

__________________
"It's hard to face reality when you're busy living in the American Dream."

Vicariously I

The_Heretic

If any god cared about what churches were doing you'd see far more of them destroyed by tornadoes, hurricanes, linghtning strikes, fire, etc.

__________________
"Enough!!" -so rang Barack Obama's voice off the walls of Mile High Stadium

Teri B.

Same here, and agreed! This celibacy rule is ridiculous and like a lot of the Vatican's pointless polices, destructive.

Gaia

Yeah...there would be all kinds of smiting going down!

__________________
"As the clock of fate ticks away, the dance of destiny continues"

Gaia

It is always the wise thing to do, to question the core tenets of ANY religion.

And NEVER give the priests too much power. They can't handle it!

__________________
"As the clock of fate ticks away, the dance of destiny continues"