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KINGSTON — The pastor of a Catholic church in Kingston has resigned from his post after the alleged misuse of church funds.
The news of the Rev. John J. Chmil’s resignation came to parishioners of the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, located at 393 N. Maple St., Kingston, before the closing of Mass at 4 p.m. Saturday.
After Mass was said, Monsignor Thomas Muldowney, vicar general for the Diocese of Scranton, read a statement from the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, the Diocese’s bishop.
According to Bambera’s statement, Chmil’s resignation comes after a routine financial review by the Diocesan Financial Office in late May.
After the review, Chmil notified the office that he had misused funds from the parish’s St. Vincent DePaul account, a charitable account with funds to be used at the discretion of the pastor.
The misused funds allegedly amount to $130,000.
In a statement from William Genello, executive director of communications for the Diocese, the $130,000 was earmarked by the account for charitable use. While the fund is usable at the discretion of the pastor, the amount used exceeds the amount able to be used from a discretionary fund and from parish savings without initial approval from the Diocese and the parish Finance Council.
Bambera’s statement goes on to say that law enforcement is involved, and that the Chmil is trying to restore the funds. A new pastor will be appointed to the church soon, the bishop also says.
According to www.scrantonvocations.com, a website run by the Diocese of Scranton, Chmil is a native of Ashley and was ordained in 1995. A church bulletin on St. Ignatius Loyola’s website states that Chmil became pastor of the church in late June of 2015.
The diocesan website states that Chmil previously served as the pastor of St. Peter’s Church in Wellsboro, Tioga County, having been assigned there in 2009. Chmil was also previously assigned as assistant pastor in St. Nicholas Church in Wilkes-Barre in the mid-1990s, before becoming assistant pastor at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Scranton in 1999, also serving as secretery to the Most Rev. James C. Timlin, then the bishop of the Diocese of Scranton.
As of time of writing, attempts to reach the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola were unsuccessful.
Muldowney said the statement would be read at each Mass this weekend.
