A Catholic priest in La Crosse, Wisconsin, said Sunday he was asked to resign as leader of his parish by church officials after he preached negative comments about the COVID-19 vaccine.
Rev. James Altman said in his Sunday sermon that “the Left” was attempting to “cancel” him after the Diocese of La Crosse contacted him Friday and asked him to step down from his post, NBC News reported.
“If the Left whines like they do like a spoiled brat often enough, they succeed in canceling so many voices of truth,” he said during the sermon. “And now that they are whining like, if I may say it, the pansy babies that they are to cancel me.”
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According to the video of Altman’s Sunday sermon at St. James the Less parish, some parishioners can be heard objecting to a scenario detailed by the priest regarding a process that could occur from a result of his actions, yelling, “No!” as he described how a “parish administrator” could be appointed by the Vatican while he appeals the resignation demand.
“I am no expert on canon law but understand only that while we are contesting the bishop’s request … he could, in theory, appoint a parish administrator whilst I remain a pastor without duties until the appeal goes through Rome, which can take up to a year or more,” he said during the sermon.
The priest previously referred to COVID-19 protocols as “Nazi-esque controls” and dissuaded followers from getting vaccinated in defiance of the church’s Bishop William Callahan, who made the request for the priest to resign, and in opposition to the Vatican, which said in December the vaccine was “morally acceptable” for Catholics to receive.
A Facebook page called the “Friends of Father James Altman” contains roughly 1,800 members and has posted defensive comments about the priest, along with negative comments about the COVID-19 vaccine.
Altman has also stirred controversy over past comments he has made, including remarks deemed by some to be racist and homophobic, as well as a statement he made claiming all Democrats are “Godless” hypocrites going to hell, according to the La Crosse Tribune.
The priest’s controversial thoughts about COVID-19 have earned the attention of an online Christian community called Faithful America, which started a petition to gather signatures in an effort to remove Altman from his position.
Those who support Altman have amassed $141,256 on GiveSendGo, a Christian crowdfunding site, to help with his legal defense against the diocese.
Other Catholic churches have made headlines in recent months over possible vaccine hesitancy or skepticism voiced to parishioners.
The Catholic Church’s New Orleans archdiocese released a statement on Feb. 26 dissuading the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, writing in a statement, “We advise that if the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine is available, Catholics should choose to receive either of those vaccines rather than to receive the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine because of its extensive use of abortion-derived cell lines.”
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More than 286 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says is safe and effective, have been administered in the United States, and 58.5% of the adult population has received at least one dose, according to CDC data.
The Washington Examiner contacted St. James the Less but did not immediately receive a response.
