We can’t help but wonder what’s going on with Fr. Paul Wilderotter?
He’s been “on leave” since 1984.
He’s lived in at least four states.
He’s had at least 20 addresses.
He apparently travels a lot.
He often talks at churches.
He’s evidently now with a non-profit (or was in recent years).
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2000-06-11-0006080612-story.html
And he is (or apparently until recently) just down the road from us in Pompano Beach at a non-profit called Food for the Poor.
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2000-06-11-0006080612-story.html
The sheer number of times he’s moved, especially across state lines, is unusual.
Consider this too: He worked with a notorious credibly accused predator priest named Fr. Richard Farwell. (Both were in the Charlotte diocese.)
Fr. Richard Farwell was put on leave in 1985, moved to a different diocese (Raleigh), sent to a church-run ‘treatment’ center (the House of Affirmation in Massachusetts), was indicted in 2002 for child sex crimes and pled ‘no contest’ to ‘contributing to the delinquency of a minor’ in 2004.
In recent years, like Fr. Wilderotter, Fr. Farwell has also worked at Food for the Poor.
https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2004_07_12/2004_11_04_AP_CharlotteDiocese.htm
And Fr. Farwell is on the Charlotte diocese’s ‘credibly accused’ list.
Now back to Fr. Wilderotter. Obviously, many priests are sent to different assignments for perfectly legitimate reasons. But Fr. Wilderotter has had a wider range of assignments than the overwhelming majority of Catholic clergy.
And he’s a diocesan priest, not a religious order one. Religious order priests are the ones most often sent across state lines. Most diocesan priests stay in one diocese for most or all of their careers.
And in fairness, obviously no conclusions can be drawn from the fact that two priests shared one non-church employer.
But here we have two clerics from the same relatively small diocese crossing state lines to work for the same relatively small charity.
So on one hand, no one should make assumptions here. But on the other hand, Fr. Wilderotter has had a very unusual journey as a priest.
Here, specifically, is where Fr. Wilderotter has lived:
NJ: Elizabeth, Elizabethport, Maplewood, Hillside
NC: Charlotte, Forest City, Hendersonville,
SC: Greenville, Piedmont
FL: Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach
(NOTE: Fr. Wilderotter has moved back and forth between some of these cities several times.)
As always, we urge you to call law enforcement if you have any knowledge, suspicions or experiences with clergy misconduct.