Fr. Cutie leaves Catholic Church, joins Episcopal Church following scandal

Miami, Fla., May 28, 2009 / 13:54 pm

Father Alberto Cutie, a priest and television host who was well-known in the Miami area, has left the Catholic Church and joined the Episcopal Church. The priest's change comes after he was photographed kissing a woman on a beach earlier this month.

Fr. Cutie was received into the Episcopal Church today at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Miami.

At a press conference Fr. Cutie thanked God and those in the wider community who have supported him. “Your prayers have truly sustained me at this time of transition in my life. With God's help, I hope to continue priestly ministry and service in my new spiritual home."

In an announcement about his leaving the Catholic Church, Fr. Cutie said, “I want to assure you that this journey did not begin a few weeks ago. I have searched my soul and sought after God's guidance for a long time. I have also spoken to friends in and outside the Episcopal Church about their service to God and the many similarities that exist among the various branches of Christianity, which profess the Catholic faith.”

"I will always love the Catholic Church and all its members. But I want to start today by going into a new family,” Cutie said.

"Here before this community where I have chosen to serve and where I live, I am going to continue to proclaim the word of God and my love for God," he added.

Fr. Cutie was a Catholic priest in Miami Beach, hosted a Spanish-language television show on Telemundo and had a radio show on Radio Paz.

However, in early May, a Spanish-language tabloid magazine released pictures of the priest and a woman on a beach in what CBS 4 Miami characterized as "several compromising positions."