Crime & Law
The Rev. Michael Pfleger Reinstated at St. Sabina After Investigation into Sexual Abuse
The Rev. Michael Pfleger appears on “Chicago Tonight” on Sept. 19, 2019. (WTTW News)
The Rev. Michael Pfleger has been reinstated at St. Sabina Catholic Church, more than a month after the longtime leader and vocal social justice advocate was removed from the South Side parish amid new allegations of sexual abuse.
Cardinal Blase Cupich on Monday announced Pfleger had been reinstated after an Independent Review Board found there was “no reason to believe” he committed the alleged abuse.
“After careful consideration I have accepted their conclusion and have reinstated Father Pfleger to ministry at St. Sabina, effective immediately,” Cupich said in a letter to St. Sabina parishioners.
Pfleger late Monday posted on social media a photo of Michael Jordan with the caption “I’m Back,” along with a statement that read: “Thank you God and thanks to all who stood by me.”
Pfleger, who has served at St. Sabina since 1981, was removed in July after the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office for Child Abuse Investigations and Review received an allegation that he sexual abused a minor more than 30 years ago. He posted a statement online at the time calling that allegation “an absolute lie.”
Pfleger has previously been accused of sexual abuse following other decades-old allegations.
He was placed on leave in January 2021 amid allegations from two brothers who said Pfleger sexually abused them as children starting in the 1970s. He stepped away again in 2022 following a separate allegation, but Pfleger has repeatedly been cleared by Archdiocese investigations and reinstated at St. Sabina.
Cupich in his letter said he wanted to “recognize the suffering you and Father Mike have endured,” while acknowledging his absence “has been real and painful.”
“Remember your dignity as disciples, those who can claim that Jesus joins your sufferings to His for the salvation of the world,” he said. “You will have my support and prayers as you continue to be a light in the community, a great witness that has distinguished St. Sabina’s for generations.”
