David Haas in a concert at the Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City, Philippines. / Titopao/wikimedia. CC BY SA 4.0
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 4, 2021 / 21:12 pm (CNA).
A top publisher of hymns will stop publishing works by David Haas after receiving additional allegations of sexual misconduct against the embattled Catholic composer.
“We have suspended our publishing and sponsorship relationship with Mr. Haas and have also removed his music, books, and recordings from our catalog and website,” said a letter from Alec Harris, president of GIA Publications.
The letter was sent to each diocese in late July. Portions of the letter were made public on August 2.
Harris said he was “deeply heartbroken” when scores of women accused Haas of varying degrees of sexual misconduct last year.
“I assume that by now you are aware of the non-profit organization that supports survivors of sexual abuse, Into Account, which recently released a comprehensive investigation and report about these allegations at www.intoaccount.org/reports/,” Harris wrote in the letter.
“Unfortunately, new information has just surfaced reporting continued grooming behaviors by Mr. Haas towards a young woman, which is why we are reaching out to you now with this email to share the actions and position we have taken with regard to Mr. Haas’ music,” he said.
A 21-year-old woman who had attended Haas’ summer camp, Music Ministry Alive!, when she was a teen, reached out to Into Account in June 2021. Haas, who is in his mid-60s, had sent the woman a letter that amounted to grooming behavior.
“While we understand that Mr. Haas maintains his innocence, we took these actions out of compassion and respect for the dozens of survivors who have come forward,” Harris said in the letter. “We believe Mr. Haas’ music no longer has a place in communities committed to maintaining a safe environment.”
Haas, a member of the laity, was a mainstay in the “contemporary liturgical music” movement that began in the 1970s, along with composers Marty Haugen, Fr. Michael Joncas, Dan Schutte, and the “St. Louis Jesuits” group.
Among Haas’ more popular songs are, “Glory to God,” “You are Mine,” “We are Called,” and “Blest are They,” among many others.
At least two dioceses–the Diocese of Oakland and the Diocese of Jefferson City–announced that they would be permanently suspending the use of Haas’ music at their parishes as a result of the new letter.
On June 13, 2020, GIA Publications announced that they had dropped Haas in January after receiving accusations of sexual misconduct and sexual assault.
“Early this year we became aware of allegations of sexual misconduct by David Haas, and we learned the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis was considering a decision not to provide him a letter of suitability,” GIA Publications said in a June 13, 2020 post on Facebook.
Haas resides in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.
“In response, we suspended our sponsorship and publishing relationship with Mr. Haas, and have not sponsored his work since late January,” they said at the time.
Following the publication of a report by Into Account, the suspension has now been made permanent.
Following the initial accusations, nearly half of the dioceses in the United States urged parishes to stop playing his music during Mass and at other events, at least until an investigation into his conduct had concluded.
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Catholics join in prayer for the 2019 International Week of Prayer and Fasting at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. / Credit: IWOPF
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 11, 2024 / 09:25 am (CNA).
Cat… […]
An artist’s rendering of the affordable apartment complex soon to be built by Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing alliance in Los Angeles. / Courtesy of Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing alliance
St. Louis, Mo., Aug 26, 2024 / 06:30 am (CNA).
Los Angeles is one of the most expensive cities in the United States, with an average home price almost touching a million dollars in 2024 — a landscape that crowds out not only the poor, but also young families with children. The high cost of housing is one of the primary reasons why tens of thousands of people live on the streets of LA, and most of those who are housed are “rent burdened,” which means they spend more than 30% of their income just keeping a roof over their heads.
In the face of such challenges, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles recently announced it will provide land for a new housing development dedicated to serving community college students and young people exiting the foster care system.
Amy Anderson, executive director of Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing alliance and a former chief of housing for the City of Los Angeles, told EWTN News that a group of Catholic lay leaders from the business and philanthropic community reached out to the archdiocese with a vision for creating an independent, nonprofit affordable housing development organization.
“Our vision is to really collaborate with the archdiocese and [use] the resources potentially available from the archdiocese to create homes that are affordable to a wide range of populations and incomes,” Anderson told “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Tracy Sabol.
She said they hope to break ground on the project, known as the Willowbrook development, “about a year from now.”
“The archdiocese is a fantastic partner. They are providing the land for our first development, which is already in process, and we’re working really closely with them to identify additional opportunities.”
The proposed building, which will be located steps from Los Angeles Community College, will feature 74 affordable housing units, as well as “on-site supportive services” for young people transitioning out of foster care — a population that often ends up experiencing homelessness.
The land, located at 4665 Willow Brook Ave just a few miles from the Hollywood Sign, currently hosts a Catholic Charities building, which will move its operations to another site to make way for the apartments.
“Through Catholic Charities and our ministries on Skid Row [an LA street where many unhoused people live] and elsewhere, we have been working for many years to provide shelter and services for our homeless brothers and sisters,” Archbishop Jose Gomez said in a statement to LAist.
“With this new initiative we see exciting possibilities to make more affordable housing available, especially for families and young people.”
Making land work for mission
The Catholic Church is often cited as the largest non-governmental owner of land in the entire world, with an estimated 177 million acres owned by Catholic entities.
Maddy Johnson, program manager for the Church Properties Initiative at the University of Notre Dame’s Fitzgerald Institute for Real Estate (FIRE), noted that the Church as a large landowner is not a new phenomenon, but there is a need today to adapt to modern challenges like regulations, zoning, and the importance of caring for the natural environment.
Many Catholic dioceses and religious orders have properties in their possession that aren’t fulfilling their original purpose, including disused natural land and parking lots, as well as shuttered convents and schools. Sometimes, Johnson said, a diocese or religious order doesn’t even realize the full extent of what they own.
“How can the Church make good strategic decisions, strategic and mission-aligned decisions, if it doesn’t know what properties it’s responsible for?” she said.
The Church of St. Agatha and St. James in Philadelphia, with The Chestnut in the foreground, a housing unit developed on property ground-leased from the church. Courtesy of Maddy Johnson/Church Properties Initiative
Since real estate management is not the Church’s core competency, FIRE aims to “provide a space for peer learning” to educate and equip Church leaders to make better use of their properties in service of the Church’s mission.
To this end, they offer an undergraduate minor at Notre Dame that aims to teach students how to help the Church make strategic real estate decisions that align with the Church’s mission. The Institute also organizes a quarterly networking call with diocesan real estate directors, as well as an annual conference to allow Catholic leaders to convene, share best practices, and learn from each other.
Fr. Patrick Reidy, C.S.C., a professor at Notre Dame Law School and faculty co-director of the Church Properties Initiative, conducts a workshop for diocesan leaders on Notre Dame’s campus in summer 2023. Courtesy of David J. Murphy/Church Properties Initiative
In many cases, Catholic entities that have worked with FIRE have been able to repurpose properties in a way that not only provides income for the church, but also fills a need in the community.
Johnson said the Church is called to respond to the modern problems society faces — one of which is a lack of housing options, especially for the poor.
“Throughout its history, there have been so many different iterations of how the Church expresses its mission…through education, healthcare — those are the ones that we’ve gotten really used to,” Johnson said.
“In our day and age, could it be the need for affordable housing?…that’s a charitable human need in the area that’s not being met.”
Unlocking potential in California
Queen of Angels Housing’s first development, which has been in the works for several years, is being made possible now by a newly-passed state law in California that aims to make it easier for churches to repurpose their land into housing.
California’s SB 4, the Affordable Housing on Faith Lands Act, was signed into law in October 2023. It streamlines some of the trickiest parts of the process of turning church-owned land into housing — the parts most people don’t really think about. These can include permitting and zoning restrictions, which restrict the types of buildings that can be built in a given area and can be difficult and time-consuming to overcome. SB 4 even includes a provision allowing for denser housing on church-owned property than the zoning ordinances would normally allow.
Yes in God’s Backyard
The law coming to fruition in California is part of a larger movement informally dubbed “Yes in God’s Backyard,” or YIGBY — a riff on the term “Not in My Backyard” (NIMBY), a phenomenon whereby neighbors take issue with and oppose new developments.
Several Catholic real estate professionals with ties to California expressed excitement about the possibilities that SB 4 has created in the Golden State.
Steve Cameron, a Catholic real estate developer in Orange County, told CNA that he is currently working with the Diocese of Orange, which abuts the LA archdiocese, to inventory properties that could be repurposed for residential use.
He said their focus is on building apartment buildings and townhomes, primarily for rental rather than for sale, in an attempt to address the severe housing shortage and high costs in Southern California.
Unlike some dioceses, the Orange diocese has an electronic GIS (geographic information system) database showing all the properties it owns. Prepared by a civil engineering firm, the database includes details such as parcel numbers, acreage, title information, and demographic reports, which facilitate the planning and development process.
“Strategically, what we’re doing is we’re inventorying all of the property that the diocese and the parishes own, and trying to understand where there might be underutilized property that would make sense to develop some residential use,” Cameron said.
Cameron said he can’t yet share details about the housing projects they’re working on, but said they are looking to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and the Queen of Angels housing project as a model for how to take advantage of the new incentives created by SB 4.
“I think it’s great, and it’s exciting that they’re taking the lead and that they are able to find an opportunistic way to repurpose an underutilized property to meet the housing shortage in California,” he said.
“[We] look at them as a role model for what we’re trying to accomplish here in the Diocese of Orange.”
Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago with One Chicago Square in the background, a residential tower constructed on the former cathedral parking lot, which was sold in 2019. Courtesy of Maddy Johnson/Church Properties Initiative
John Meyer, a former president of the California-based Napa Institute who now works in real estate with J2 Development, emphasized the importance of viewing the Church’s vast real estate holdings as an asset rather than a liability.
Meyer said he is currently working with two Catholic entities on the East Coast on ground lease projects, one of which will fund the construction of a new Catholic Student Center at a university. He told CNA he often advises Catholic entities to lease the land they own rather than selling it, allowing the church to maintain ownership of the property while generating income.
Naturally, he noted, any real estate project the Church undertakes ought to align with the Church’s mission of spreading the Gospel, and not merely be a means of making money.
“Any time we look at the Church’s real estate decisions, it’s got to be intertwined with mission and values,” he said.
“We’re not just developing for the sake of developing. What we want to do is we want to create value for the Church, and we also want to create value for the community. So working closely with the municipality to make sure that needs are met, and to be a good neighbor, is important.”
He said Church leaders should strongly consider taking advantage of incentives in various states such as California for projects like affordable housing, which align with the Church’s mission and provide both social and financial benefits.
“Priests and bishops aren’t ordained to do these things, and sometimes they have people in their diocese that have these abilities, and sometimes they don’t,” Meyer said.
“This [new law] in California has created an incentive that we can take advantage of, so we need to take advantage of that incentive…it’s allowing us to unlock potential value in land while at the same time serving a social good that’s part of the mission of the Church.”
Harrisburg, Pa., Jan 29, 2019 / 02:49 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- For Catholics sympathetic to Catholic schools, the financial expense of tuition is always a concern. But continuing efforts from donors and recent programs like Pennsylvania’s tax credit … […]
12 Comments
These are just allegations and while I have compassion for any victim of abuse, its disgraceful to find someone guilty before they have even been tried which is what these actions amount to.
To those who have been given much, much will be expected.
Anyone in a position of leadership or influence, especially when the influence is over the young or vulnerable, should be held to the highest standard. I am a retired Catholic school teacher. I guarantee I would have been immediately dismissed for some of the comments, innuendos, and actions made toward me and 2 of my daughters 20+ years ago by another “famous” Catholic Church musician. My diocese did absolutely nothing. We were told “It’s not the whole of (person’s name.)” But this person played a pivotal role in damaging and undermining my children’s trust in the Church. Eventually, he was put “underground” for a few years until something “move visible” happened. Afterward, he resurfaced in another diocese. Sound familiar?
It is time to stop giving the benefit of the doubt to people who abuse their position and listen to the “targets” of their bad, and at worst sick, behavior. This is not an argument about church music nor is it an attack on a person. It doesn’t matter how famous, popular, or powerful someone is. It doesn’t matter if the person is a better musician than Bach. While we stand in a stupor, drinking in the “charisma” of these predators, their “targets” are being dehumanized and losing their trust in the Church. How many testimonies does it take before we listen?
Unlike some others who have commented here, I have enjoyed singing some of David Hass’ music. I am not against contemporary music in the Church. But a “rock concert” is not going to keep young people or anyone Catholic, especially when they or their family or friends are being abused by the ones appointed to shepherd them.
I believe in innocent until proven guilty, but I also believe that fame, power, or popularity should not give a person special allowances. Too many Catholics are unwilling to look beyond their own comfort zone in the Church, let alone listen to the “cries of the poor.” People who step forward in cases like this are mistrusted, called crazy, diminished, blamed, etc.
Most decent people don’t want to see someone else lose their job. But a choice has to be made. Why do we as a Church keep choosing the famous, powerful, and popular over our ordinary brothers and sisters? That’s what predators count on. That’s how they succeed.
PS. Yes, I am still Catholic. I am Catholic because of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.
I quite liked his Mass our choir sang. (I don’t know if he had more than one).
I also believe I remember our choir director (different choir, different director) saying that Schubert’s Ave Maria was once a no-no because he wrote it for his mistress. More than a few musicians/artists were scoundrels. (Not suggesting Haas’s music is on the same level as Schubert’s).
His music is unsuitable for the Liturgy. Good riddance. This is a small victory for those who want actual sacred music at Mass.
Haas admitted guilt when he apologized last year on his website, after initially denying any wrongdoing. I don’t think any diocese can or should support the use of his music.
Surely Haas deserves his day in court in order to prove or disprove his innocence, however, in my court his contribution to church music has been an abysmal failure.
The OCP has 733 hymns in their publication. Now tell me, just which congregation needs more than 50 to 100 hymns(or 25 to 50) in the first place. Not only that, looking through the publication, more than just the David Haas hymns should be scrapped. For far too long Catholics have been subjected to the singing of a new church into being and having things raining down upon her people, for crying out loud. We could have a grand bon fire with all the misbegotten hymns in print forced upon us in the past 50 years.
Let’s get back to worshipping God with our voices, not each other.
OCP preys on musically ignorant music directors/cantors and distracted/uninvolved pastors. They have an integrated system that “makes it easy” for any one off the street to choose music to plan a Mass. Unfortunately, the choices are usually all of their second-rate composers with their accompanying mediocre music. OCP profits off selling the copyrights of this music. Parishes purchase the same music year after year in a missalette-type subscription format (“Breaking Bread”) rather than a hardbound pew hymnal. It’s expensive besides.
As for Haas, he’s not just a nameless, faceless composer, who has been accused of some sinful things; rather, he used his parish-sponsored workshops and his “Music Ministry Alive” group (which he founded) to groom underage victims whom he later would go on to abuse. He is well-known in certain circles, and used his stature within the Church to gain access to these women. Talk about a “safe environment.” Hearing his music at Mass now, whether one is a victim or simply has heard about these accusations, makes worship a distraction. We can do so much better.
There is a wealth of Catholic music out there which can often be downloaded and reprinted for free, if you look around online or have a savvy music director at your parish. Until parishes have the scales removed from their eyes, OCP will remain the driving force behind mediocre music during the Liturgy.
By 
These are just allegations and while I have compassion for any victim of abuse, its disgraceful to find someone guilty before they have even been tried which is what these actions amount to.
Very true.
On the other hand, they should have banned his music years ago on the grounds of being utter tripe.
That made me laugh Leslie.
To those who have been given much, much will be expected.
Anyone in a position of leadership or influence, especially when the influence is over the young or vulnerable, should be held to the highest standard. I am a retired Catholic school teacher. I guarantee I would have been immediately dismissed for some of the comments, innuendos, and actions made toward me and 2 of my daughters 20+ years ago by another “famous” Catholic Church musician. My diocese did absolutely nothing. We were told “It’s not the whole of (person’s name.)” But this person played a pivotal role in damaging and undermining my children’s trust in the Church. Eventually, he was put “underground” for a few years until something “move visible” happened. Afterward, he resurfaced in another diocese. Sound familiar?
It is time to stop giving the benefit of the doubt to people who abuse their position and listen to the “targets” of their bad, and at worst sick, behavior. This is not an argument about church music nor is it an attack on a person. It doesn’t matter how famous, popular, or powerful someone is. It doesn’t matter if the person is a better musician than Bach. While we stand in a stupor, drinking in the “charisma” of these predators, their “targets” are being dehumanized and losing their trust in the Church. How many testimonies does it take before we listen?
Unlike some others who have commented here, I have enjoyed singing some of David Hass’ music. I am not against contemporary music in the Church. But a “rock concert” is not going to keep young people or anyone Catholic, especially when they or their family or friends are being abused by the ones appointed to shepherd them.
I believe in innocent until proven guilty, but I also believe that fame, power, or popularity should not give a person special allowances. Too many Catholics are unwilling to look beyond their own comfort zone in the Church, let alone listen to the “cries of the poor.” People who step forward in cases like this are mistrusted, called crazy, diminished, blamed, etc.
Most decent people don’t want to see someone else lose their job. But a choice has to be made. Why do we as a Church keep choosing the famous, powerful, and popular over our ordinary brothers and sisters? That’s what predators count on. That’s how they succeed.
PS. Yes, I am still Catholic. I am Catholic because of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.
Well said, Bertasi!
These are only allegations so far.
The censure seems a bit hasty.
Can we not separate the man from the music?
My low opinion of his music has never wavered over the years. And it wouldn’t change even if he was made a “Venerable” or praised by a pope.
I quite liked his Mass our choir sang. (I don’t know if he had more than one).
I also believe I remember our choir director (different choir, different director) saying that Schubert’s Ave Maria was once a no-no because he wrote it for his mistress. More than a few musicians/artists were scoundrels. (Not suggesting Haas’s music is on the same level as Schubert’s).
His music is unsuitable for the Liturgy. Good riddance. This is a small victory for those who want actual sacred music at Mass.
Haas admitted guilt when he apologized last year on his website, after initially denying any wrongdoing. I don’t think any diocese can or should support the use of his music.
Surely Haas deserves his day in court in order to prove or disprove his innocence, however, in my court his contribution to church music has been an abysmal failure.
The OCP has 733 hymns in their publication. Now tell me, just which congregation needs more than 50 to 100 hymns(or 25 to 50) in the first place. Not only that, looking through the publication, more than just the David Haas hymns should be scrapped. For far too long Catholics have been subjected to the singing of a new church into being and having things raining down upon her people, for crying out loud. We could have a grand bon fire with all the misbegotten hymns in print forced upon us in the past 50 years.
Let’s get back to worshipping God with our voices, not each other.
My understanding is that OCP has a stranglehold on church music.
OCP preys on musically ignorant music directors/cantors and distracted/uninvolved pastors. They have an integrated system that “makes it easy” for any one off the street to choose music to plan a Mass. Unfortunately, the choices are usually all of their second-rate composers with their accompanying mediocre music. OCP profits off selling the copyrights of this music. Parishes purchase the same music year after year in a missalette-type subscription format (“Breaking Bread”) rather than a hardbound pew hymnal. It’s expensive besides.
As for Haas, he’s not just a nameless, faceless composer, who has been accused of some sinful things; rather, he used his parish-sponsored workshops and his “Music Ministry Alive” group (which he founded) to groom underage victims whom he later would go on to abuse. He is well-known in certain circles, and used his stature within the Church to gain access to these women. Talk about a “safe environment.” Hearing his music at Mass now, whether one is a victim or simply has heard about these accusations, makes worship a distraction. We can do so much better.
There is a wealth of Catholic music out there which can often be downloaded and reprinted for free, if you look around online or have a savvy music director at your parish. Until parishes have the scales removed from their eyes, OCP will remain the driving force behind mediocre music during the Liturgy.
St. Cecilia, pray for us!