He is accused of nude activity with minors in Waterford.
An area priest who drew fire three years ago for his sexually explicit Internet Web site, faces possible firing by the Vatican amid fresh allegations that he went nude swimming, boating and hot-tubbing with minors 20 years ago.
First, the church will have to find the Rev. John Harris.
The priest left his parish, Our Lady of the Lakes in Oquossoc, last week to begin an approved leave of absence. He told churchgoers he was going to study physics at an out-of-state school.
Since then, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland has completed its investigation into the new charges, which also include allegations that he posed nude for a photo with minor, according to church officials.
“There was no allegation of any sexual contact,” said Sue Bernard, a spokeswoman for the Portland diocese. Meanwhile, investigators found “sufficient grounds exist to begin a disciplinary process.”
Harris, 48, has faced controversy before.
In 2000, while at the Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Sabattus, Harris was involved in an Web site for gay priests. The site included several sexually explicit pictures and a short video of a man masturbating.
Harris’ six years at the Sabattus church ended amid the furor. The priest was sent to counseling in Baltimore, Md., and then to the church in Oquossoc in Franklin County.
Harris argued that the site was an Internet support group. Though some of the material was in bad taste, he told a Sun Journal reporter, it was not pornography.
He deserved another chance, he said. Church officials now say his chances may be over.
“A priest has to live up to different standards,” Bernard said
Details of the new allegations are sketchy. Bernard said they came from someone who observed Harris 20 years ago, when he would visit a private camp in Waterford.
None of the minors have come forward, which has prompted the diocese to ask for help. People with information about the claims are encouraged to call either the diocese or local police.
Details of the church investigation and its findings have been turned over to the attorney general’s office, the district attorney and the state Department of Human Services. Any criminal charges will be up to them.
But church sanctions are a separate issue and will wait for the end of Harris’ current leave, which could be as much as a year away.
Diocese leaders don’t know how long Harris will be gone.
“We don’t even know what state he’s in,” Bernard said.
However, he will contact the diocese since he will need its benefits to become a student, Bernard said.
When the leave ends, machinery will likely begin in Rome to put Harris’ case before a U.S. tribunal, capable of stripping him of all priestly rights. It’s a process known as “laicization.”
Meanwhile, the Portland diocese will talk with people from Harris’ former parish in Oquossoc.
On Wednesday, a letter was sent from Bishop Joseph Gerry to every known household in the parish. Representatives of the dioceses are also expected to attended weekend services at the church, where they will answer questions about Harris.
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