Ousted priest gets a show of support from fellow Newton clergy

In a rare decision to comment on the workings of the Roman Catholic Church, a group of non-Catholic clergy in Newton criticized Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley yesterday for the ouster of the Rev. Walter H. Cuenin.

Cuenin resigned as pastor last week from Our Lady Help of Christians Church amid allegations of financial improprieties. The decision drew strong negative reactions from the parish.

The Newton Clergy Interfaith Association, which represents more than 40 places of worship in the city, released a strongly worded statement supporting Cuenin, whom they called a ''beloved and trusted pastor."

''The grounds given by the Archdiocese of Boston for his dismissal are spurious at best," the statement said. ''While Bishop O'Malley has the power and the right to remove a priest from a parish, his moral authority to do so is clearly compromised by this punitive action."

Cuenin, who had served two consecutive six-year terms as pastor of the church, announced last weekend that he was resigning.

His decision followed a report from the archdiocese that said a $500 monthly stipend he received for the performance of baptisms, weddings, and funerals, and a leased Honda Accord he shared with visiting priests were in violation of archdiocesan rules.

''If it had been a matter of theology, of doctrine . . . we would have had absolutely no reason to weigh in," said the Rev. Richard Malmberg, vice president of the clergy association and pastor of Second Church, a United Church of Christ church in Newton. ''But when they attacked the sterling reputation of a man we respect, we were outraged and felt we had to say something," Malmberg said.

The archdiocese says Cuenin has agreed to pay back $75,000 in stipends it says he received in violation of the rules.

Yesterday, the archdiocese faxed The Boston Globe a copy of a policy stating that priests are supposed to receive $5 per Mass -- a move to bolster its allegation that Cuenin was violating regulations by receiving $500 per month.

''They're certainly entitled to their opinion," Terrence C. Donilon, a spokesman for Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley, said yesterday, responding to the statement by the Newton clergy. ''We have strong relationships with other denominations across the board. We respect all denominations. But for the Catholic Church, this was a serious issue."

As pastor of Our Lady Help of Christians, Cuenin has made many friends in the religious community. He sent cards to Newton rabbis for Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year celebration, and he made a point of welcoming all new clergy to Newton. When a local synagogue was sprayed with anti-Semitic graffiti, he led a group from his congregation to clean up the mess. He is also a contributor to ''Talking Religion," a Sunday interfaith show on WRKO-AM.

Cuenin has spoken in support of gay rights and against the archdiocese's handling of the clergy sexual-abuse crisis. Those stances, many parishioners and fellow clergy members say, may have played into the decision of the archdiocese to ask for his resignation.

''It isn't a Jewish thing or a Protestant thing or a Catholic thing," said Rabbi Eric Gurvis of Temple Shalom of Newton, one of six rabbis from the city who signed a separate statement in support of Cuenin. ''Father Cuenin is one of the most beloved figures in this community. And that's why you're seeing the outpouring."

The archdiocese has appointed the Rev. Christopher J. Coyne, a former spokesman for Cardinal Bernard F. Law and O'Malley, to take Cuenin's place.

The parish council and finance council of Our Lady Help of Christians Church had approved the $500 monthly payment to Cuenin, as well as the car lease. But Donilon yesterday reiterated the archdiocese's position that by agreeing to pay back the money, Cuenin was admitting wrongdoing.

Rabbi Toba Spitzer, who leads Congregation Dorshei Tzedek in West Newton, and who is one of the six rabbis who signed the statement in support of Cuenin, said ''internal Catholic Church matters are for them to deal with."

''But we wanted to give Walter some support," Spitzer said. ''He's stood with our community, and we want to stand with him."

Matt Viser can be reached at maviser@globe.com.