After a shooter killed two monks at Conception Abbey in June of 2002, the leadership at the abbey had to decide whether to disclose that they had knowledge of sexual misconduct by at least one member of its monastic community. Instead of doing the right thing, Abbot Gregory Polan and Mr. Daniel Madden misled the authorities.
Archive for Sheldon Lyon
From death, new life
The abbot learned that it’s best to make certain that no disagreement goes unresolved. A lack of forgiveness or inability to be forgiven can be among the most crippling of experiences.
Monastery Recalls Shooting One Year Later
CONCEPTION, Mo – Every day, the Rev. Kenneth Reichert is reminded of the deadly rampage a year ago that shattered the serenity of his northwest Missouri abbey. He recalls the bloodshed whenever he uses his hands _ the tip of one finger is missing. His mind goes back to that day whenever he puts on the brace that stabilizes his right leg. “I can’t even take a shower without being reminded because of the scars on my body,” he said. “I can’t even walk down the hall without remembering.”
Gunman not under influence during shooting
The man who shot four monks, killing two, wasn’t on any medication when he opened fire at Conception Abbey last month. The toxicology results of Lloyd Jeffress came back with no sign of Prozac in his system. Mr. Jeffress had been prescribed Prozac, an anti-depressant.
Diocese paper tracks divorce
More details about the mysterious life of the Conception Abbey shooter are coming to light days after he killed two monks and wounded two others before he killed himself.
Answers still unclear in Conception shooting
CONCEPTION, Mo. (KRT) – The basilica bells at Conception Abbey tolled more than 80 times beneath storm clouds Tuesday morning, marking the number of years two monks shot and killed here had dedicated to their faith.
Shooter seen as bitter over divorce
(St. Joseph News-Press) Lloyd Jeffress was angry with the Catholic Church. “He was very bitter toward the church because of a divorce years ago,” said Sgt. Sheldon Lyon of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. “We believe that’s a good possibility of why he committed these acts.”
Abbey Gunman’s Divorce Investigated
CONCEPTION, Mo. — The man who killed two monks and wounded two others at a Roman Catholic abbey was unhappy about how the church treated him after he divorced his wife, The Associated Press learned Wednesday.
Abbey killer was upset with church about his divorce
Abbey officials said they had found nothing in their guest, seminary and employment records to link Jeffress to Conception Abbey. Investigators said they had no evidence connecting the shootings to the sex abuse scandal in which Catholic priests have been accused of molesting children.
Slayings at monastery prompt deep look into 71-year-old shooter’s life, final acts
(St. Joseph News-Press) CONCEPTION, Mo. — A lone Missouri State Highway Patrol investigator, Sgt. David Merrill, is struggling to re-create the life of the formerly devout Catholic who went on a murdering rampage at Conception Abbey.
Monastery Gunman Ignored Pleas for Mercy From Monk
This afternoon, the gunman’s daughter told Missouri detectives that in Mr. Jeffress’s youth he was a devout Catholic but that in recent years, he had occasionally attended a Methodist church. Why and when Mr. Jeffress left the Catholic Church remained a mystery, Sergeant Lyon said. That left equally unclear whether there was any tie between the killings and the American Catholic Church’s sexual abuse crisis.
Possible motive emerges in shooting rampage at Missouri abbey
KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ A long grudge against the Roman Catholic Church associated with his divorce could be a gunman’s motive in the fatal shooting rampage at Conception Abbey this week, authorities said Wednesday.
Monastery locked up as killings are probed
Polan said the worst trouble the monks — who lead a simple life of work and prayer — had faced until Monday was a few dollars missing from an outdoor collection box.
Gunman kills 2 monks at Conception Abbey
Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Sheldon Lyon, Nodaway County Sheriff Ben Espey and Abbot Gregory Polan walk away from Conception Abbey after a gunman went on a shooting spree Monday morning. (JOSH BIGGS/News-Press)
CONCEPTION, Mo. — Gunshots startled the peace, prayer and welcome built during the last 129 years by a group of Benedictine brothers.
Mo. Abbey Gunman Is ‘Mystery Man’
Investigators said they have no evidence connecting the shootings to the sex scandal in which Catholic priests have been accused of molesting youngsters.