Texas bishop releases recording of nun's confession to 'sexting'
Texas bishop says recording proves disabled Mother Superior ADMITTED to breaking her vow of chastity by ‘sexting’ with a priest in Montana after she ‘fell in love’: ‘I made a horrible, horrible mistake’
- Recording was played on Tuesday in Texas court hearing in bitter lawsuit
- In it, Carmelite nun appears to admit to sexting affair with priest in Montana
- Fort Worth Bishop Michael Olson banished the nun from her order over the claim
The former prioress of a Catholic convent in Texas admitted to breaking her vow of chastity with a Montana priest, according to an audio recording of her confession described in court proceedings.
Fort Worth Bishop Michael Olson recorded his April 24 interrogation of Mother Superior Teresa Agnes Gerlach in her Arlington convent, in which she seemed to admit to a consensual long-distance phone romance with a Montana priest.
‘I made a horrible, horrible mistake,’ Gerlach is heard saying on the recording, according to a partial transcript published by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, which described her voice as ‘barely audible’.
The recording was played in Tarrant County Court on Tuesday, during a hearing in a lawsuit Gerlach filed against the bishop, accusing him of storming into her convent, defaming her, and seizing cell phones as he investigated her alleged sexual sins, which she denies.
For the first time, the recording publicly reveals the identity of the priest involved in the alleged transgression, whom the nun named as Father Bernard Marie, a priest recently stationed in Montana, according to the Star-Telegram.
In court testimony, Olson accused Gerlach of ‘sexting’ with the priest, while the bishop’s right-hand man testified that another nun at the convent had called the prioress a ‘wh**e’ when she learned of the claims.
On June 1, Olson banished Gerlach from her order, the Discalced Carmelite Nuns, one day after receiving special powers from the Vatican to pursue his investigation
Fort Worth Bishop Michael Olson accused Mother Superior Teresa Agnes Gerlach of ‘sexting’ with a priest, and released an audio recording of her alleged admission to the sin
Gerlach, 43, has severe chronic health issues that confine her to a wheelchair, and require her to use a feeding tube and receive round-the-clock care from a fellow nun, her attorney Michael Bobo has previously told DailyMail.com.
Bobo had no immediate comment on the recording when reached by DailyMail.com following the hearing, though in court he raised her serious heath issues and suggested she may have been medicated during key events in question.
In a video statement earlier this month, Olson denied that Gerlach had been under heavy medication during the April 24 interview, saying she was ‘clear and lucid, and had normal use of her physical and mental faculties.’
On June 1, Olson banished Gerlach from her order, the Discalced Carmelite Nuns, one day after receiving special powers from the Vatican to pursue his investigation.
Olson said at the time he had found her ‘guilty of having violated the sixth commandment of the Decalogue and her vow of chastity with a priest from outside the Diocese of Fort Worth.’
In the Catholic Church, the Sixth Commandment is ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery’ and forbids sex outside of marriage. Catholic priests and nuns are forbidden to marry and take vows of celibate chastity.
Separately, the Arlington Police Department previously confirmed that is is investigating events at the monastery to ‘determine whether any criminal offenses have occurred.’
The nuns’ attorney has said he made a criminal complaint relating to the claims in the civil suit, while the diocese says it also alerted police to alleged marijuana use at the convent.
Bishop Olson’s right-hand man, the Very Rev. Jonathan Wallis, also testified at Tuesday’s hearing, saying that Gerlach admitted her sexual transgressions to him three times, claiming that each time was outside the seal of confessional
At Tuesday’s hearing, the court also heard testimony from the Very Rev. Jonathan Wallis, vicar general of the Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth and Bishop Olson’s right-hand man.
Wallis testified that on three occasions – on December 22, December 24 and January 5 – Gerlach told him that she had broken her chastity vows, and that each time was outside the seal of confessional.
Wallis testified that Gerlach made the admissions when he visited to celebrate Mass at her convent in Arlington, the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity.
The vicar general said that Gerlach told him she believed she was falling in love, and knew it was a sin, but said that she liked it.
Wallis also testified that Sister Francis Therese, Gerlach’s fellow nun and full-time caregiver, called the former prioress a ‘w**re’ when she learned of the alleged sexting.
However, Therese is also suing Olson as a plaintiff in Gerlach’s suit, alleging the bishop invaded the nuns’ privacy and seized their phones as he pursued his investigation. The devices have since been returned.
Wallis said that he first notified the bishop of Gerlach’s admission in April, after she requested time to address the matter with superiors within the Carmelite order.
The centerpiece of Tuesday’s hearing, however, was the bombshell audio recording of Gerlach’s admissions, which was played by attorneys for the diocese.
The roughly 40-minute recording captured a conversation held between Olson, Gerlach and Therese on April 24, when according to the nuns’ lawsuit, the bishop stormed into the convent to confront Gerlach regarding her alleged transgressions.
It is unclear whether Gerlach was aware she was being recorded as she spoke with the bishop.
On the recording, church bells from the convent can be heard in the background as Olson asked Gerlach about reports that she broke her chastity vows, according to the Star-Telegram.
‘I have received information about a violation of the Sixth Commandment by you with a priest. Do you know anything about that?’ asked Olson.
‘I’m so sorry,’ Gerlach said.
‘It’s OK. I understand. There is hope for redemption. Let’s follow through with the priest’s name. Can you please tell me who this priest is?’ the bishop pressed.
‘Bishop, he’s not from this diocese’ the nun replied.
Olson released in court a recording of his April 24 interview with Gerlach at the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity (above), the convent she ran in Arlington
The former Mother Superior made extraordinary allegations in a sworn affidavit last month, accusing Olson of barging into the convent to interrogate nuns and confiscate phones
Olson continued to press Gerlach for a name, and asked her to confirm the relationship was consensual, to which she replied: ‘It’s true, yes.’
‘Bishop, most of this was done on the phone,’ the nun said, but then appeared to waver after affirming that some of the alleged misconduct was in person.
‘Bishop, I need to tell you something. I don’t know how to explain this, but this did not happen in person. At all. It was all over the phone. So, he did not come down here.’
Olson replied: ‘That’s something you changed the story on…We have a hard time with the truth.’
Gerlach again insisted she had not met the priest in person, adding: ‘I promise you, Bishop. At the time, I was having seizures, and I was really in a very difficult position. and I think my brain just got really messed up.’
Further pressed by the bishop on the priest’s identity, Gerlach said he is Father Bernard Marie from a monastic community in Montana, the Transalpine Redemptorists.
The Transalpine Redemptorists, also known as the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, are an order of monks headquartered on a remote island in Scotland.
The group is currently building a monastery near Forsyth, Montana, within the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings, on a 200-acre property they have dubbed Montana Rosa Mystica.
In a statement to DailyMail.com, Great Falls-Billings Bishop Michael W. Warfel said the priest in question had been temporarily visiting the Transalpine Redemptorists from another diocese, to decide whether he wished to join the monastic community.
‘During his time in Montana discerning his vocation, the priest was never assigned to parish ministry, nor did he ever celebrate Mass publicly at a parish in the diocese,’ said Warfel, without naming the priest.
Warfel said that on April 26, his diocese received a call from the Diocese of Fort Worth, which was ‘investigating an incident involving the priest and a religious sister’ in Texas.
Although the priest was not ministering in the diocese during his visit, Warfel said he suspended the priest’s faculties for ministry in Montana during the course of the investigation, a customary step for any priest facing investigation.
‘It was reported to us by his religious superior that the priest wished to leave the religious community and return home, which he did on May 1, 2023,’ said Warfel.
Reached by DailyMail.com, a diocese official said that Bernard’s home diocese was on the East Coast, but declined to specify further.
On June 1, Olson banished Gerlach from her order , the Discalced Carmelite Nuns, one day after receiving special powers from the Vatican to pursue his investigation
The May 31 decree empowering Olson to investigate the nuns was issued by the Catholic Church’s Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life
On the recording that played in court, Gerlach said that she first made contact with Bernard when he contacted her convent asking for prayers.
‘And he and I were writing often to each other. And, um, we just got very close,’ she said, saying they communicated over email and a video chat.
Gerlach also spoke of having seizures and made remarks that she was ‘very confused’ and ‘not in my right mind’.
Tuesday’s hearing was held to determine whether secular courts have jurisdiction in the nuns’ lawsuit against the bishop.
The diocese has argued that the dispute is purely religious in nature and outside of the purview of civil courts, under the religious freedoms granted by the Constitution.
Bobo, the attorney for the nuns, argues that their rights were violated under Texas laws and says they are entitled to relief in the state’s courts.
Judge Don Cosby, of the 67th District Court said he will issue a ruling next week.
He told the hearing: ‘This is a difficult, emotional matter. I hope everyone respects that.’
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