A priest “kicked out” a 7-year-old boy who has autism for being a “distraction”, according to the child’s mother and a video recording the incident, which she posted on her Facebook page posted.
“It was shocking to say the least,” Julia Vicidomini, the boy’s mother, told NBC News. “We are still hurting and overwhelmed, and it shows that a lot still needs to be done to educate others about people with disabilities.”
Vicidomini said she and her family members attended Christ Saturday at Hillside Church, New Jersey, for the baptism of her daughter Sofia.
Vicidomini, 38, said she had attended the Roman Catholic Church since she was a child herself and that her two other children, Nicholas and Christopher, 16, were baptized there.
“We just wanted Nicholas to be part of the celebration,” Vicidomini said, adding that she did not reveal he had autism because she did not think it was necessary because the ceremony was a private family event.
During the ceremony, Nicholas, who finds comfort in bringing toys to public places, played in a candle room next to the baptism, Vicidomini said. He dropped a toy and knocked it to the floor, after which Pastor Luke Duc Tran, the priest who led the ceremony, instructed Nicholas to leave.
“Out,” the priest said, according to a video posted on Vicidomini’s Facebook page. “This church is not for theater.”
Vicidomini said Nicholas “thankfully” did not understand what happened and left the church with her mother-in-law, but that it was still “painful” to testify that the priest interacted with her son in that way.
When Vicidomini tried to explain Nicholas’ condition, the priest replied, “Do not bring your children to church to distract me,” per the video.
“This could have been handled differently,” Vicidomini said. “We did not talk to Nicholas in that way and it was unprofessional and indecent for the priest to do that. He should speak to us as the parents, not Nicholas.”
After the ceremony, Vicidomini and her husband, Marc, visited the priest, she said.
“The priest began to raise his voice and told my husband that Nicholas should not play in the church and that it was a distraction for him,” Vicidomini said. “My husband told him he thought a priest, of all people, would be more sympathetic to a child with special needs.”
The Archdiocese of Newark asked the family on behalf of the church, acknowledging in a statement that the priest was “sorry.”
“The pastor was not aware that the sibling who was playing near the candle room during the ceremony had autism,” the statement read. “The pastor did not understand the child’s behavior, he did not feel prepared to respond appropriately, and his response to the situation was not pastoral.”
The archdiocese also said its Office for Pastoral Ministry with Persons with Disabilities is working with the Vicidomini family “to ensure there is greater awareness in working with people with a disability.”
While Vicidomini said she appreciates that the archdiocese is reaching her, she is still hoping for a personal apology from the priest. She also said she no longer plans to attend Christ the King’s Church because of the incident.
“The Bible speaks of welcoming all children of God, but there was no mercy in this instance,” Vicidomini said. “Since sharing our story, others have shared stories of their own family members with special needs from the church. We want to continue spreading awareness that this is just not right.”
