Statement From Former Abbot Jerome Hanus

“A lawsuit has been filed that makes several claims about me while I served as Abbot of Conception Abbey. I await the opportunity to respond to these claims according to the system of justice in our country.” – Jerome Hanus

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Sr. Warden’s Letter Regarding Fr. Bede’s resignation

It is with much regret that I inform you of the resignation of our friend and musician, Bede Parry. Most of you are aware of the lawsuit filed against Conception Abbey in Missouri alleging that Father Bede participated in sexual misconduct.

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Lawsuit against Missouri monastery involves Las Vegas Episcopal priest

(Las Vegas Review-Journal) A Las Vegas Episcopal priest resigned from his duties at a local church Thursday after his name surfaced in a lawsuit alleging a Missouri monastery covered up sexual abuse by him. The lawsuit, filed in Missouri by a former choir boy, alleges the Roman Catholic monastery, Conception Abbey, kept secret the boy’s 1987 sexual assault by Bede Parry, then a Catholic priest who directed the choir.

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Former leader of boys choir at Missouri abbey admits sexual misconduct

(The Kansas City Star) A former Benedictine monk who directed a boys choir at a northwest Missouri abbey in the 1980s admitted on Thursday that he had inappropriate sexual relations with several members of the group.

Bede Parry, who led the Abbey Boy Choir of Conception Abbey from 1982 to 1987, told The Kansas City Star that he had sexual contact with five or six of the choir members as well as a student at a Minnesota university.

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Lawsuit alleges abuse at Conception Abbey

(St. Joseph News-Press) A Missouri man filed a lawsuit Thursday against Conception Abbey, alleging a priest continued to sexually abuse children while the monastery covered up his crimes.

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Lawsuit alleges abuse of boys by monk at Conception Abbey

(KC Star) A Missouri man filed a lawsuit today against Conception Abbey in northwest Missouri, alleging a coverup of sexual abuse by a former monk who directed its boys’ choir in the late-1980s. The lawsuit, filed in Nodaway County Circuit Court, claims that Bede Parry, then a Benedictine monk, molested the plaintiff in 1987 during a summer camp at the abbey. At the time, Parry led the Abbey Boy Choir of Conception Abbey.

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Conception, Missouri Abbey Faces Lawsuit

Parry, who was ordained in 1983, was then assigned to Conception Abbey where he was in charge of the choir program. In 1987, when the minor Plaintiff attended a residential choir camp at the Abbey, he was sexually abused by the priest. When the child’s parents brought the assault to the attention of Abbot Hanus, they were told that Father Parry had a “mental breakdown” and he would be treated for the breakdown.

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SNAP Media Advisory

According to the suit, the crimes happened in 1987. The suit maintains that in 2000, “psychological testing revealed that Parry was a sexual abuser who had the proclivity to reoffend with minors.” The test results “were provided to the Abbey, the Las Vegas Catholic Diocese and Nevada’s Episcopal bishop,” according to the suit. Still, he ended up at a local church.

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Conception Abbey Boy Choir

Album recorded in 1981. Cover Art Below.

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Abbey Boy Choir

If you were a member of the Conception Abbey Boy Choir under the supervision of Fr. Bede Parry or Fr. Reginald Sander, please contact us.

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May 16, 2011 Letter to Abbot Polan

During a phone conversation on May 12, 2011, you advised me that, on advice of the abbey’s legal counsel, you made a decision to not send such a letter. This decision is selfish, shortsighted and far from compassionate. I respectfully request that you reconsider.

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Allegations of Abuse

If you have information regarding sexual misconduct at Conception Abbey, a Benedictine monastery near St. Joseph, Missouri, please contact us.

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Meet the Monks

Below is the latest known list of monks at Conception Abbey

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Wikipedia: Jerome Hanus

George A. Hanus was born in Brainard, Nebraska. He took the name Jerome when he entered Conception Abbey, in Conception, Missouri. On September 1, 1961, he professed religious vows in the Order of Saint Benedict. He was educated at Conception Seminary and ordained a priest on July 30, 1966.

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Anniversary of Abbey Shooting

CONCEPTION, Mo. (AP) — The doors at Conception Abbey in northwest Missouri are still unlocked and open, and forgiveness continues to be the theme as the members of the rural monastery remember a day of horror five years ago. Yesterday was the anniversary of a shooting spree that left two monks dead. The gunman also killed himself.

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