So, as late as 2020 he's in Michigan and (presumedly still?) running a Buddhist antique shop, and NOT in priestly ministry anywhere. Then he shows up at OLHC in early 2021 in full cassock and starts saying Mass etc.
???
Then there's the alleged full Buddhist altar in his home? That's been explored on the other threads.
Putting the very best foot forward (since I don't want to believe he's not a real priest), here's the only scenario I can think of: He was ordained in the 1990's by some bishop somewhere then left without an assignment or a chapel. Or he did minister somewhere for a time. He's been forced to live and work in the world in order to earn a living, perhaps saying Mass privately. He seems to know his way around the altar and the liturgy from what I've heard and seen.
The whole thing doesn't appear to make sense. DocuŠ¼enting and making public his history should be an easy task for the school board that appears to be running the show over there. A simple task, to put to rest the mystery and close these threads. If Fr. Perez were still alive (God rest his soul!) I imagine he would resolve this whole matter posthaste and Fr. Starbuck would still be there in Garden Grove.
As much as we would all like to believe that explanation, it does not explain why he repeatedly adamantly refused to show his drivers' license.
Nor does it explain why he refuses to say when, where or by whom he was ordained and in what rite.
Nor does it explain why he changed his name from whatever it was before -- to the name he is using now, Michael Wiest.
We know that not only did "
Father Michael Wiest" never exist on paper anywhere, but
Mr. Michael Wiest never existed either except for the two items in the Three Rivers newspaper (and information gathered by doing a reverse look-up from the phone number of Mr. Michael Wiest given in one news article.)
In the internet age, it is impossible for someone to have no record of his existence, unless it was deliberately disappeared by an expert.
Topic: OLHC laypersons attempting to take over chapel CENSOR Fr. Starbuck's sermon (Read 65389 times)