The Legionaries of Christ is closing two schools in the Sacramento region, the latest setback to the troubled order that has had a prominent presence in the Sacramento area for the past decade.
Church officials confirmed Sunday that the University of Sacramento and the Immaculate Conception Apostolic School, a seminary for teenage boys contemplating the priesthood in Colfax, are closing.
The university president said the school will end its academic programs when the last class ends in August. He cited the recession and a change of focus for the order.
"The Legionaries of Christ are faced with other priorities and challenges that simply do not permit it to proceed as planned," said university President Robert Presutti.
The University of Sacramento opened in 2005 and was the only Legion-run university in the United States.
Closing the two schools is the latest blow to the religious order that has been active in the Sacramento diocese and runs day-to-day operations at Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, which has more than 5,000 parishioners.
The once fast-growing and influential religious order, a favorite of Pope John Paul II, has been in turmoil in recent years.
The Legion's founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel of Mexico, was forced to leave public ministry in 2006 following accusations that he had sexually abused men studying for the priesthood decades earlier. In 2009, church officials acknowledged that he had fathered a daughter. Maciel died in 2008 at the age of 87.
Later that year, Pope Benedict XVI announced that Vatican officials would visit all schools, seminaries and churches run by the Legionaries of Christ.
Last year, the Vatican announced that it would take over and overhaul the order. In January, the Legionaries of Christ handed over control of a school in St. Louis to a lay board.
The decision to close the two Sacramento-area schools is part of the order's ongoing restructuring, according to Legion leaders.
"It's a combination of economics and certainly the turmoil, which has had an economic impact as far as donations are concerned," said Jim Fair, communications director for the Legionaries of Christ in North America.
Enrollment at the schools dropped in recent years. About 50 students attended the program for master's degrees at the university, and hundreds of others attended non-degree programs, according to Presutti. Only 17 students were enrolled at the minor seminary last year, Fair said. Parents and students have been informed of the school's closing.
In addition to overseeing Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, the largest church in the diocese, the priests ran the minor seminary and the university.
"We are grateful for their efforts and thankful that they will continue to serve the community through their work at Our Lady of Guadalupe," Sacramento Catholic Bishop Jaime Soto said in a statement.
Priests for the order now either have been reassigned or have left the order, according to Presutti. Five years ago, 10 Legion priests worked in the Sacramento area. That number has dropped to five and is expected to change in the coming months as more priests, including Presutti, are reassigned.
In 2007, Presutti announced plans to build a permanent campus and said the Catholic university would be part of the Cordova Hills housing development north of Jackson Road. "Unfortunately, that won't happen now," he said.
"We are saddened by the departure of the University of Sacramento," said Ron Alvarado, Cordova Hills managing partner, in a statement. "We believe in the vision they have outlined and are confident that we will have a premier college or university as an integral amenity to this project."
Presutti said the turmoil has been difficult but that the priests are committed to their work. "Frankly, we love what we do; we love working with the community," he said.
He said the closing of the two schools does not mean the order is leaving Sacramento. "It's really our need to restructure."
