A Louisiana pastor who filmed himself having a threesome on a church altar has been denounced by the New Orleans Archbishop, who called his actions "demonic."
In a video statement issued on Friday, Archbishop Gregory Aymond said that he had ordered the altar to be "removed and burned."
Louisiana pastor Travis Clark was arrested on September 30 after a passerby caught him engaging in a sexual act with two dominatrices in the church
Clark, a parish priest, has been removed from the ministry and charged with public obscenity — a felony in Louisiana that carries a sentence as high as three years in prison.
Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
A Louisiana pastor caught filming himself in a sexual act with two women on a church altar has been denounced by the New Orleans Archbishop, who called his actions "demonic."
Archbishop Gregory Aymond said on Friday that he has ordered the altar to be "removed and burned" and that the pastor, Travis Clark, will "never again" serve in Catholic ministry.
Aymond called Clark's actions "deplorable" and "demonic" in a video statement published by the Archdiocese on Friday.
"I am infuriated by his actions. When the details became clear, we had the altar removed and burned. I will consecrate a new altar tomorrow," Aymond said, according to Catholic News Agency (CNA).
Clark was arrested on September 30, along with the two dominatrices, in Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church in Pearl River.
The three were discovered by a passerby who saw that the church lights were on later than usual. The altar had been fitted with stage lighting and several cameras, according to local reports.
Along with the two women, Clark was charged with public obscenity — a felony in Louisiana that carries a sentence as high as three years in prison. He has been removed from the ministry.
"Lady Vi," one of the two dominatrices involved in the act, wrote in a statement posted to Twitter on Saturday that all parties involved in the act "were consenting adults."
"I understand that people may be upset by this situation, but that does not make this conduct illegal or criminal in any way. I would implore anyone seeking to pass judgment or direct their energy elsewhere," she wrote, adding that it is "regrettable" that she is being presented to the world as a criminal.
Clark was ordained in 2013 and became the pastor of the Sts. Peter and Paul church in 2019.
Last month, a former priest in the same church, Pat Wattigny, reportedly told Archbishop Aymond that he had sent inappropriate texts to a local high school student, where he had been a chaplain, according to a NOLA.com report.
"What has happened concerning Pat Wattigny and Travis Clark is unacceptable. It's sinful and it cannot be tolerated," Aymond said in the video statement. "Let me be clear: Both were removed from ministry immediately and will never serve again in Catholic ministry."
wonky10 on October 12nd, 2020 at 02:14 UTC »
Bruh I know a girl that confessed to this priest right before all of this went down. Apparently the priest was a total asshole and all of this doesn't really surprise or upset anyone.
scohrdarkshadow on October 12nd, 2020 at 01:26 UTC »
I mean tbh if I caught my roommate having a threesome with 2 prostitutes on my couch I’d probably think about burning the couch
milankundera1946 on October 11st, 2020 at 23:05 UTC »
I had a friend a few years ago who secretly dated a nun for a while. It was a weird place in the world, where they found themselves, and I guess they needed each other.