A soon-to-be-laicised American priest has civilly married the young woman with whom he fled to Europe in July. Source: OSV News.
Fr Alex Crow, who abruptly left Corpus Christi Parish in Mobile, Alabama, to travel to Italy with Taylor Victoria Harrison, a June 2023 graduate of McGill-Toolen Catholic High School, filed a notarised Alabama marriage certificate with the Mobile County probate court on November 20, one week after his 30th birthday.
The document lists Ms Harrison, 18, as his wife. The couple returned to the Mobile area earlier this month.
Mobile attorney Christine Hernandez, who represents Harrison’s family, said “the family is very upset and has no comment at this time”.
The laicisation process that was initiated by Archbishop Thomas Rodi a month after Fr Crow’s departure has not yet been completed.
In a statement issued yesterday, the archdiocese said: “Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi announced in July that he had suspended Alex Crow and prohibited him from acting, dressing, or presenting himself as a priest. Archbishop Rodi additionally shared in August that he saw no way back to the priesthood for Alex Crow.”
The archdiocese also said that “the recent news of Crow’s civil marriage only confirms the Archbishop’s judgment. Archbishop Rodi anticipates that the Vatican will eventually laicise Alex Crow.”
While Harrison was believed to be 18 at the time of her travel to Italy, her family has repeatedly expressed grave concerns their daughter had been groomed by Fr Crow, who attended the school from 2007-2011 and later provided pastoral ministry to students –although school officials have denied he was formally employed or had ever chaperoned school trips or retreats.
FULL STORY
Priest who fled parish files for civil marriage with 18-year-old woman (By Gina Christian, OSV News)
