Monsignor named in sex abuse suit is removed from ministry

BATH, Pa. – Church officials in Pennsylvania have removed a monsignor from ministry after learning of a lawsuit that claims he told a teen he was counselling online to disrobe and perform sex acts.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Allentown announced the move Wednesday.

The suit was brought by a Suffolk, Virginia, man who says he was 16 when Monsignor Francis Nave began counselling him in 2011 after the teen sought support on a gay social media website.

The boy reportedly told Nave he was depressed, had low self-esteem and suffered sexual and emotional abuse at home. The counselling sessions lasted about a year before the man said he stopped communicating with Nave.

Efforts to reach Nave for comment were unsuccessful. He was pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Bath.