Defrocked Greek Orthodox Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse Dies at 75

Nicholas Katinas, a defrocked Greek Orthodox priest who had been suspended over allegations of sexual abuse, has died. An e-mail to parishioners of Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in North Dallas announced that he died on Monday at age 75.

Katinas was suspended after his 2006 retirement and was later defrocked. In 2007, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America said that Katinas had engaged in “serious moral transgressions” involving minors. The Dallas Morning News reported that he had fled to Greece.

Katinas faced a lawsuit in Texas involving five alleged victims of sexual abuse. The source material does not report the status or outcome of that case.

Separate allegations also arose from his time as a priest at a suburban Chicago parish. A former altar boy at Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Olympia Fields filed a lawsuit alleging that Katinas sexually abused him in the 1970s and that church officials allegedly failed to act on what they knew. These are allegations in a lawsuit, and the source does not report any finding on them. Protecting children from harm and answering honestly for what leaders knew is the concern at the center of these cases (Proverbs 31:8-9).

Katinas had led Holy Trinity for 28 years. During that time he participated in interfaith efforts and played a role in the church’s high-profile Greek Food Festival.

Source: Read the original report