Roman Catholic Diocese of Sioux City - History

History

In the past, the area that now makes up the Diocese of Sioux City was under the jurisdiction of a number of Catholic prelates. Since there was no Catholic presence in the area for much of that time, this jurisdiction scheme was largely academic. In 1838 this area came under the authority of the newly created Diocese of Dubuque, an arrangement that lasted nearly 64 years. In the following years diocesan officials and other Catholics began to feel that due to its size the Dubuque Diocese wasn't able to fully support their needs because at the time it covered the entire northern half of the state of Iowa. They also did not like the distances involved in traveling to Dubuque, which was on Iowa's eastern border - several hundred miles away.

On January 15, 1902, Pope Leo XIII took a 24 county area of northwest Iowa from the Archdiocese of Dubuque and created the Diocese of Sioux City. When it was founded, the Diocese of Sioux City had 50,000 Catholics, 95 priests, 84 parishes, and 32 missions. Leo XIII named Rt. Rev. Phillip J. Garrigan, a vice-rector of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. as the first bishop of the diocese.

Bishop Garrigan was formally installed in office on June 18, 1902. He proceeded to name what was then Saint Mary's Church as his cathedral church. Garrigan applied to the Vatican for permission to rename Saint Mary's to the Cathedral of the Epiphany, which was subsequently approved.

In the early 1960s, records indicate a local priest, Father E. Everett Apt began his career of sexually molesting children. The local church authorities reassigned him to prevent a scandal. The Diocese made a settlement in 2005.

In 1995, Father Gerald Hatz, superintendent of Sioux City Catholic schools was accused of indecent contact with a thirteen year old girl. The girl refused to testify. In 1996 the father was accused of grabbing and kissing an adult woman in church.

Bishop Lawrence Donald Soens was named the Bishop of Sioux City in 1983, and served until his retirement in 1998. Soens was accused of having sexually abused children while serving in Catholic diocese of Davenport prior to his appointment as bishop. The Davenport Diocese went bankrupt faced with numerous claims of sexual abuse.

In 1991, Father George McFadden entered treatment after being accused of abusing more than twenty-five boys and girls. In 2005, the Vatican refused to laicize Father McFadden.

Bishop Soens was followed by Daniel Nicholas DiNardo, who served as bishop of the Sioux City Diocese from 1998 until he was named the coadjutor bishop of Galveston-Houston in 2004. The diocese was then vacant until November 10, 2005 when Monsignor R. Walker Nickless was named bishop.

On 29 December, 2004, Archbishop Jerome Hanus made public a report stating that between 1950 and 2002, accusations of misconduct were made against 26 local priests. Eighteen of those were, by that point, dead. Criminal charges had been brought against two priests, and civil charges were, at that point pending against "a couple" more.

In 2008, a civil suit was filed against Fathers John Kurzak and John Perdue claiming they had molested a seminary student in the 1980s. The suit claims local authorities knew of this misconduct but allowed the Father John (Kurzak) to become a military chaplain.

In November 2010, Father Nicholas Ruba and the diocese were sued by a woman who claimed she had been abused while she was a child working at the rectory.

In February, 2012, Bishop Nickless spoke during a webcast sponsored by the conservative group, Family Research Council, where he characterized an Obama Administration initiative to require health insurers to provide birth control coverage as having been sponsored by "the power of evil," and called for "followers of the light" to "stand up and violently oppose this."

Monsignor Kevin McCoy, who has served as the rector of the Pontifical North American College is a priest of the Sioux City Diocese.