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Article: Canon law says bishop doesn't own parishes. (law and church ownership of real property)
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- December 19, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Bishop Charles V. Grahmann of Dallas was acting in accordance with canon law of the Catholic church when he told a court that he is not the owner of parish properties but holds them in trust for parishioners, according to James Coriden, a canon lawyer who teaches at Washington Theological Union.
Grahmann, facing a $119.5 million civil judgment against the diocese for the actions of a former priest, recently filed legal documents to that effect in an effort to protect parishes against collection efforts related to the suit.
"This is their new scam," said Sylvia Demarest, one of the attorneys for the 11 former altar boys who told a jury about years of ...