The Diocese of Peoria says Fulton Sheen knew of abuse allegations against priest Gerard Guli but refused him an assignment; a 1968 newspaper report said Sheen announced Guli’s transfer to a Rochester church. Sheen is due to be beatified in St Louis Thursday.
Further archival reports cited by The Telegraph placed Guli at St Francis Church in Auburn before his 1968 transfer and at St Ambrose in 1971. Peoria said its investigation found no evidence he was assigned to those churches, citing Guli’s testimony that Sheen refused him a post; it said Bishop Hogan appointed him to a different parish in 1971. The Vatican and Peoria have not released their findings or underlying evidence.
The beatification recognizes a miracle involving James Engstrom, born in 2010: his family says his heart began beating again after about 61 minutes without a heartbeat, and he later had a normal brain MRI. The Vatican approved the case in 2019; canonisation, the final step to sainthood, requires a second miracle.
