Last week we published an open letter by Fr. Larry Gosselin, OFM, who pastored the mission in the past, to Bishop Baldacchino, noting that “the people of Mescalero have spiritually suffered greatly in this recent demise of the sacred dignity and controversy over this Icon.” Fr. Gosselin advised that the restoration of the image needs to take place in the context of “a formal blessing of honoring in complete honesty and profound humility to the People of Mescalero needs to take place for reconciliation and restitution of the harm that this has caused.” He recommends this as only the “first step” in a path of reconciliation.

There was one detail in this saga that suggests to me that the diocese may not intend to undergo a path of atonement and reconciliation, however. You may remember that the artist who drew the icon, Brother Robert Lentz, OFM, wrote an open letter about the painting, in which he asserted, “What I want to Stress in my short remarks is that the icon is THEIRS. It belongs to them physically. As I said above, I gave it to them, and they have chosen to hang it in their church. It also belongs to them spiritually.”

Prior to this, the diocesan COO, Deacon John Eric Deacon John Eric Munson, OFS insisted in a recorded phone conversation on June 27, 2024, that the artwork belonged to the diocese, not the mission, because the mission belonged to the diocese.

In the OSV News article reporting the return of the artwork, reporter Gina Christian confirmed with community members that “one of the parishioners had brought the artwork back from the tribal offices to the church.” More recently, I spoke with community members who confirmed that the diocese returned the artwork by U-Haul to the tribal offices on the reservation, not to the church.

Was this a sign from the bishop that he believes (as the former pastor Fr. Chudy is reported to have said) that the image does not belong in the Church? Does he also believe that it is impossible to be both Apache and Catholic? Why was it not returned to the place from which it was stolen?

Who knows? Neither the bishop nor the diocese has issued a public statement at any point during this affair.

It also remains to be seen who will be appointed to serve the community in Fr. Chudy’s place. Pray that they are given a priest who will love them and help them heal. This assignment cannot be made as an afterthought, their next pastor must be someone with the heart of a shepherd.

Some thoughts

As I mentioned above, I have been in touch with members of the Mescalero Apache Catholic community. In the days to come I will work to amplify the voices of the indigenous people directly harmed by these events.

But I have also collected my own thoughts about this as a lifelong Catholic with a great deal of experience working in and around the Church. I have listened to many Catholics who have suffered at the hands of the institutional Church and have felt abandoned and voiceless when harm is done to them by Church officials. I compiled my reflections into a thread on X (formerly Twitter) and I reproduce it here, lightly edited:

I am humbled by the faithfulness of the Apache community throughout this nightmare, but I’m also horrified to learn that in the months leading up to the theft of the Apache Christ icon that they suffered under a pastor, forced upon them by their bishop, with such obvious contempt for their culture.

I shudder at the thought that if Fr. Chudy had not taken the dramatically wicked step of stealing their icon (leading to an international outcry), these brothers and sisters in faith would have had to endure a “pastor” who looks down on them and detests their culture for much longer.

By assigning Fr. Chudy to serve the St Joseph Apache Mission, Bishop Peter Baldacchino inflicted (knowingly or not) spiritual abuse on an indigenous community that’s already endured much persecution in their history. The call with the diocesan COO suggests the diocese was complicit.

It seems Fr. Chudy is being removed from administration of the mission. But that’s only the beginning. The bishop and diocese must take responsibility for the sins and injustices that they committed against and inflicted on the community of the St. Joseph Apache Mission. Apologies and reparations are necessary.

This incident points to a much bigger problem in our Church, however. Pope Francis speaks of a listening Church. I remember his address to the US bishops in 2015, reminding them that they must be close to the people.

Yet how many more bishops (deliberately or through inattention) send tyrannical, bull-headed pastors to parishes? How often do they ignore the voices of the faithful about spiritually abusive priests? How often do they ignore the voices of women — who are always the “glue” that binds the community together.

The Apache Christ icon is being restored because the priest’s action in this case was so dramatic, so absurd, so bizarre, that the world took notice. But how many other communities are suffering under similar evil, ignored by their bishops, with little recourse in the Church?

We are still waiting for answers about this case. Even still, there are already many lessons we should take from the theft of the Apache Christ. It points to a much bigger problem. I think this is only the tip of the iceberg.

Image: The artwork in the Mescalero Apache tribal offices. Source: Mescalero Apache Tribe Facebook page.