1971

Kansas City-St. Joseph bishop was Charles Herman Helmsing (1962-1977), followed by John Joseph Sullivan (1977-1993)

St. Joseph

• Urbanic was accused in June 1011 of having sexually abused two minors in the mid-1970s, while at St. Francis Xavier's. Urbanic acknowledged that "early in my priesthood I acted inappropriately."

St. Joseph

• One of the two who reported Urbanic to the diocese and Urbanic's religious order in June 2011 filed a lawsuit in February 2012. This accuser said Urbanic sexually abused him in the mid-1970s when he was a 15 year-old LeBlond student. Urbanic's accuser said Urbanic had invited him and others to play pickup basketball. He said that when he showed up, he found that he was the only boy there. He claims that he and Urbanic played some basketball, and that Urbanic inappropriately touched him during and after the game. He said that Urbanic would then regularly invite him to the rectory for lemonade, where Urbanic would make suggestive comments and invite the boy to his bedroom. The accuser said Urbanic sexually assaulted him one of those times.

Bishop LeBlond High had 452-502 students.

The February 2012 lawsuit claimed the diocese and the Missionaries of the Precious Blood received reports in the mid-1970s that Urbanic had sexually abused a student, but did nothing. The man said he decided to sue "to protect other potential past or future victims."

1980

St. Cloud bishop was George Henry Speltz (1968-1987)

1987

Sullivan was succeeded as Kansas City-St. Joseph bishop by Raymond James Boland (1993-2005)

St. James' had a school with 322 students, and a religious education program with 514 students.

Urbanic is referred to as "Jim" in the 2003 Directory.

2003

Robert William Finn replaced Boland as bishop (2005-)

This assignment is per news reports.

Urbanic was removed from public ministry in July 2011 after accusations surfaced that he had sexually abused two minors in the mid-1970s.

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1972-2011)

• Catholic Priest Removed from Duties over Allegations Dating to 1970s, By Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, July 5, 2011
• Liberty Priest Removed Because of Sex Allegations, By Jessica Machetta, The Missourinet, July 6, 2011
• Recent Sacred Heart Pastor Leaves Priesthood over Reports of Sexual Misconduct, By Lisa Handke, The Digitalburg, July 13, 2011
• Lawsuit Accuses Priest of Abuse in 1970s, By Glenn E. Rice, Kansas City Star, February 8, 2012
• Suit Filed against Former St. Joseph Priest, By Kim Norvell, News-Press, February 9, 2012

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Urbanic's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on March 26, 2012