A small group of Carmelite nuns who live in a wooded monastery in Arlington have transferred ownership of their property to a foundation of benefactors and supporters, the latest move in a battle with the Vatican over who has authority over their religious life.
Among the members on the foundation’s board is Thayne McCulloh, president of Gonzaga University, a Catholic institution in Spokane, Washington, run by Jesuits. McCulloh’s sister is a member of the Arlington Carmelites, according to the Pillar, a news site that covers the Catholic Church.
Gonzaga University did not respond to phone calls and emails seeking comment.
Sheila Johnson, whose mother Ruth Carter Stevenson, donated the land for the monastery, said McCulloh is an an adviser to the foundation. Johnson said she is not serving on the foundation’s board, but said she will always support the nuns.
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The nuns have been embroiled in a dispute with the Diocese of Fort Worth and the Vatican for over a year. It began when Bishop Michael Olson investigated a report that the nuns’ leader, the Rev. Mother Teresa Agnes Gerlach, broke her chastity vows with a priest from outside the diocese.
The nuns sued Olson over allegations of invasion of privacy and theft of personal property related to his investigation, but a Tarrant County judge threw out the lawsuit, ruling it was a church matter.
“The idea of creating the foundation was another layer of protection against the bishop,” she said. “We moved the deed to the foundation.”
Michael Bobo, the Fort Worth attorney who represented the nuns in their lawsuit, is also on the board, Johnson said.
The nuns are not commenting on why they turned the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity over to the foundation, but they previously said they did not want Olson and the diocese to sell the property. Olson has stated on several occasions and in court testimony that he has never intended to do that.
The Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity is now under the ownership of the Friends of the Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Arlington Inc. The change goes against orders from the Vatican in April that placed the nuns under the authority of the Association of Christ the King to manage most day to day matters of the monastery.
Olson would also oversee some aspects of governing the monastery such as holding elections, according to letters from Olson and the Vatican. Rome appointed Mother Marie of the Incarnation, president of the Christ the King Association, as the major superior of the Carmel but the nuns opposed the orders from Rome.
The nuns issued a statement on Sept. 14 that said that they were aligned with the Society of Saint Pius X, a traditionalist society that has been at odds with the Vatican.
Mother Marie said in an Oct. 1 statement on the Diocese website that the society was “currently in an irregular canonical relationship” with the church.
“The Association of Christ the King does not support the Arlington Carmel’s step outside the boundaries of clear communion with Rome, has not been consulted about this move, and has in no way cooperated with it,” she wrote.
The sisters also announced that elections were held in August, and the Mother Teresa Agnes Gerlach was elected to a three-year term as prioress. The election was not authorized by the Christ the King Association and Rome.
