Angry Catholic Priest Kicks Mourning Family Out of Church During Woman’s Funeral
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
A priest at Saint Mary’s Catholic Church in Charlotte Hall, Maryland decided that a funeral would be a good time to pick a fight with the mourning family, ultimately kicking them out — mid-funeral — after someone accidentally tipped over the chalice (a.k.a. the sacred golden cup, a.k.a. the Bowl of Jesus’ Blood).
54-year-old Agnes Hicks‘ body was in the open casket on Tuesday when a child accidentally knocked over the chalice near the altar.
The right response would’ve been to clean up the mess and move on.
Pastor Michael Briese did not know the right response.
“That’s when all hell broke loose. He literally got on the mic and said, ‘there will be no funeral, there will be no mass, no repass, everyone get the hell out of my church,’” Shanice Chisely, the daughter of Agnes Hick recalled. “He disrespected our family, he disrespected my mother. He called my mother ‘a thing.’ He said, ‘get this thing out of my church! Everyone get the hell out of my church!’ It was very sad. I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
Police were called in and they were able to escort the family — and Hicks’ body — to a different funeral home where a proper service was conducted. But the family can’t exactly put the first incident out of their mind.
The Archdiocese has since issued an apology:
The Archdiocese of Washington has issued an apology to the family that reads in part, “What occurred at St. Mary’s Parish this morning does not reflect the Catholic Church’s fundamental calling to respect and uplift the God-given dignity of every person nor does that incident represent the pastoral approach the priests of the Archdiocese of Washington commit to undertake every day in their ministry.”
The Archdiocese of Washington added that they were taking the matter seriously and it was still under review.
So much for resting in peace.
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Jeez. It's just Jesus blood. There's plenty more where it came from (liquor store).
Sounds like someone didn't have time to make it to the liquor store and was furious that the "blood" on hand was wasted before he could get his fix.
well you know, the devil made him do it... or he's just corrupted by sin (even tho he's a religious leader).... or God must be testing him and had someone knock over the chalice on purpose... or "God works in mysterious ways"...
just pick one.
Messing up Coming and going, last week priest slapped a baby for crying and now throw a funeral out of church.
Good point. Dysfunction from cradle to grave.
It sounds like the priest may be suffering from some psychological or psychiatric issues. I seriously doubt if it has anything to do with him being a Catholic.
Religion and psychological issues sometimes go hand in hand.
Now the Church has done it...Last week it was slapping babies and this week is smacking a mourning family...Next week it's time to insult the middle aged folks...
The church's new motto....We don't want any of them damn kids or dead people. We're working on the rest of you...
We already know what they do to adolescent boys ...
and girls.
I would love to see him try with me. But when it comes his time to meet St Peter at the gate and asks to enter, SP will reply "As if! "
My question is why was a kid near the altar? The only people that are supposed to be with even 5 feet of it are the priest and the altar servers.
Now...spilling the wine is pretty serious business in the eyes of the church especially after it's been blessed. According to Catholic doctrine, that wine really is the blood of Jesus.
In case you think I'm sticking up for this priest, I'm not....he could have handled this a whole lot better. A simple "Jesus fucking Christ" would have worked and gotten his anger out of system then he could have carried on.
Unless the wine had been consecrated, which is unlikely to happen at a funeral, it is just cheap wine. The child might have dented the chalice but it can be fixed.
This priest is an emotional nutcase who forgot that the priest doesn't own the church. The church is owned by the parish members, and the priest is a hired hand who is appointed by the bishop.
Why wouldn't it be consecrated (blessed) at a funeral? Catholics have masses for everything especially wedding and funerals.
I've been to many Catholic funerals and I've never seen communion given as part of the service. I'll call my mom later this evening and ask her because she did 12 years of Catholic school and then 4 years of Catholic college. My father was a 4th degree Knight of Columbus and there was not communion as part of his funeral.
At Catholic weddings only the bride and groom receive the sacrament of communion. It might be different in another diocese.
I take it back. If the family does not wish to have a funeral mass, the priest can just say a few words and be done with it. We were married by a Catholic priest but didn't have a mass therefore the Eucharist was not given.
However, I can't see why there was consecrated wine in the chalice if the Eucharist was not going to be given.
I have never been to a "Catholic" funeral at a church that didnt include a Mass.
If someone didnt want a Mass they would probably just conduct some prayers at the funeral parlor and/or the cemetery.
I agree. The chalice should have been in the anteroom behind the altar in that situation. There is more to this story to be told.
That is 1000% not true. I've gone to many Catholic funerals and there is always a Mass. If there is a Mass, there is communion.
I've never been to a Catholic funeral so I'm taking your word for it. But I did get married by a RCC priest with no mass. He even suggested it since I wasn't Catholic at the time
Apparently it varies by the diocese.
I have never seen a funeral inside a Catholic Church without a Mass, but Im sure it is possible if the family asked for it to be that way. If there is a Mass, there is communion though, that is for sure.
Being asked to believe fairy tales like that is why I left the Church.
This is really just a gratuitous attack on the Catholic Church. The individuals actions were obviously something outside the boundaries of his duties as a catholic priest. Same thing with the slapped baby last week.
Are we to believe that no atheists have psychiatric issues?
Untrue. When it comes to religion, I am an equally opportunity attacker, and couldn't care less that it was a Catholic church. Just because this is a bizarre story does not mean that it deserves to be buried under the obscurity of 'some priest just had a bad day'.
The article itself may not be a gratuitous attack on the Catholic Church, but as it plays out on Newstalkers it definitely is. This site has many anti-Catholic bigots. It always has.
Actually it does. The Catholic Church does not support priests behaving badly during services. It is a personal shortcoming of this particular priest, not a reflection on the Church, or religion in general.
When I was a kid I was an altar boy. In those days the altar boy poured the wine from a large carafe into the priests chalice right before the consecration. One of the priests at the parish used to always say " a little more please". (He liked his liquor).
Such a story today on Newstalkers would inspire a whole thread of anti-Catholic insults. At the time us altar boys just thought it was funny.
Who said they did? Would you rather read an article about an average funeral service? Man bites dog gets more attention than dog bites man.
Why would anyone accept the word of the RCC as a moral authority on abortion or LGBT rights when they can't convince their own priests to stop molesting children?
Damn, sounds like a good one. And it's 'altar boys,' alter is what the priests do to them!
Many of us bigots were raised Catholic and witnessed the abuses from the inside.
faster drainage?
Only in the very broadest sense. This story would have been posted regardless of what church of whatever sect it had happened at.
I think in Lutheran communion they say something like "The blood of Christ spilled for you" (been a long time, but reading this brought that to mind)