Father Joseph Iannuzzi EXPOSED, Part 1: What you need to know about the elusive “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”.
An email from the Bishop of Marquette confirms my suspicions.
In 2005 Fr Joseph Iannuzzi, OSJ published a book through St Andrew’s Productions called Antichrist and the Endtimes.
Inside the book, under “About the Author”, Fr Joseph Iannuzzi describes himself as follows (my emphasis in bold):
Fr. Joseph is member of the missionary religious community located in the Diocese of Marquette, MI that enjoys the ecclesiastical approval of his local bishop and the added endorsements of two bishops of the Detroit Diocese. As an international association that promotes the Church’s mystical tradition, the missionary community provides solo-wilderness retreats at the CCL (Companions of Christ the Lamb) spiritual center that spans well over 1,000 acres of verdure in the village of Paradise, MI. Those interested in making solo-wilderness retreats to deepen their union with God’s Divine Will may contact Fr. Joseph at soulofjesus@juno.com.
This photo of a page from a hard copy of the book is sufficient proof. But to confirm it for yourself online click here. Then put the first of the following search phrases into the search bar and press enter. Repeat for the 3 other search terms. You’ll see the whole of the paragraph in question, in four overlapping samples.
“Joseph is member”
“local bishop”
“CCL (Companions of Christ”
“village of Paradise”
The same paragraph appears again in “About the Author” in Fr Iannuzzi’s 2006 book, Proper Catholic Perspectives: On the Teachings of Luisa Piccarreta (also St Andrew’s Productions):
All three paragraphs are the same as in the 2005 book, except now there is a mailing address rather than an email address: P.O. Box 12, Paradise, MI 49768. I will return to this point.
The font style for the address is different for some reason. There is no online preview of the book that includes this section, so the reader will have to confirm the accuracy of the screenshot for him/herself by consulting the book (the Kindle version is very cheap). I’ve provided an extra screenshot below.
The quoted passage raises a number of red flags, and many things don’t add up. I will go into those details later (toward the end). Suffice it to say that I was sufficiently motivated to reach out to the Diocese of Marquette. I contacted the Director of Vocations on March 12. I asked him about Fr Iannuzzi and his “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” (notes in square brackets were not in my original email):
Dear Rev. Ben Hasse
My name is Dr Brendan Triffett and I'm doing some research on different Catholic religious communities in the Diocese of Marquette.
I am getting conflicting information about a community called "Missionaries of the Holy Trinity". In a few places online I noticed that Fr Joseph Iannuzzi says he is the initiator of this community and that it exists in the diocese of Marquette.
https://stthomasaquinassociety.org/speakers/iannuzzi-joseph-l-father/
https://deaconjohn1987.livejournal.com/4102916.html
There is also a reference to the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity on Fr Iannuzzi's webpage [see here], about a third of the way down. He accepts payments under the name of this community.
Also here
https://www.ltdw.org/newsletter-subscription---publication-orders.html
In his 2005 book on the Antichrist he writes this about himself
(you can find it written out here https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/8147445-fr-joseph-is-member-of-the-missionary-religious-community-located-in-the-diocese-of )
[Here I cite the quoted passage (the blue text above)]
It seems to me that this community doesn't exist, however. I contacted [redacted] … said there is no such community [redacted] and that Fr Iannuzzi just owns a house somewhere down the road in Paradise, Michigan.
The fact about the house checks out
https://nuwber.com/person/563a9409a219445d525f5333
https://www.michiganresidentdatabase.com/person/104151419/joseph-iannuzzi
https://www.governmentregistry.org/find/joseph-iannuzzi
[Redacted] said some things about Father Iannuzzi that worried me. The person I contacted [redacted] did not want [his/her] name revealed for fear of retaliation from Fr Iannuzzi! They also said that Fr Iannuzzi has been active in the ArchD. of Detroit [my mistake: I should have said the Diocese of Gaylord] and in the Diocese of Marquette and that he [Fr Iannuzzi] had some difficulties with parishioners but [my source] didn't say anything else.
So now I'm curious whether Fr Iannuzzi's "Missionaries of the Holy Trinity" ever had the "approval" of the bishop of Marquette, or any bishops of Detroit. I am very dubious, given all of the above.
Thank you for your time
Dr Brendan Triffett
I was honoured with a prompt response from the Bishop of Marquette, Most Reverend John F. Doerfler:
Dear Dr. Triffett:Greetings in Jesus Christ.
No such community called the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” has ever been approved by the Diocese of Marquette, and to the best of my knowledge there is no such community by that name acting without diocesan approval within the Diocese of Marquette.
Fr. Ianuzzi is not a priest of the Diocese of Marquette. He does own a house within the diocese, and I hear that he comes to the diocese and stays in that house periodically. Fr. Ianuzzi is not exercising any ministry within the Diocese of Marquette, nor have I granted him faculties.
I hope that this addresses your question.
For information regarding any religious communities that have been approved by the Church, I would recommend that you consult the Official Catholic Directory: https://officialcatholicdirectory.com/OCD/home
Sincerely in Christ,
+John F. Doerfler
Most Reverend John F. Doerfler, STD, JCL
Bishop of Marquette
1004 Harbor Hills Drive
Marquette, MI 49855
906-227-9115
In seven points, then, Bishop Doerfler kindly clarified the situation for me. In his words,
No such community called the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” has ever been approved by the Diocese of Marquette,
and to the best of my knowledge there is no such community by that name acting without diocesan approval within the Diocese of Marquette.
Fr. Iannuzzi is not a priest of the Diocese of Marquette.
He does own a house within the diocese,
and I hear that he comes to the diocese and stays in that house periodically.
Fr. Iannuzzi is not exercising any ministry within the Diocese of Marquette,
nor have I granted him faculties.
Let’s return to that crucial statement that Fr Iannuzzi made about himself in two of his books in 2005 and 2006:
Fr. Joseph is member of the missionary religious community located in the Diocese of Marquette, MI that enjoys the ecclesiastical approval of his local bishop and the added endorsements of two bishops of the Detroit Diocese.
If this statement was true in 2005, then in 2005 Fr Iannuzzi must have been a member of some “missionary religious community” that
was located in the Diocese of Marquette, Michigan,
enjoyed the ecclesiastical approval of the Bishop of Marquette,
enjoyed the added endorsements of two bishops of the Archdiocese of Detroit [I’m not sure why Iannuzzi spoke of the “Diocese” rather than the “Archdiocese” of Detroit], and
was not called, and is not called, “the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”.
The first three conditions are taken from Fr Iannuzzi’s own statement. The fourth condition is there because we now know that the Diocese of Marquette has never approved a community called the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”.
In 2005, the year in which Iannuzzi’s book on the Antichrist was published, the local bishop in Marquette was Bishop James Garland (installed November 11, 1992; retired December 13, 2005). Alexander Sample was bishop of Marquette from 2005 to 2013; he was succeeded in 2014 by the current bishop of Marquette, + Doerfler. But there is no need to contact Garland or Sample to ask if either of them gave the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” their ecclesiastical approval. If either of them had, Bishop Doerfler would certainly have it on record. Hence Bishop Doerfler wrote “No such community called the ‘Missionaries of the Holy Trinity’ has ever been approved by the Diocese of Marquette”.
*
Let’s take a step back. Which “missionary religious community” was Fr Iannuzzi talking about when 2005 (and again in 2006) he claimed to be a member? There are three possibilities:
(i) He was talking about the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity—in which case he was lying, or extremely deluded.
(ii) He was talking about some other religious community—in which case he was lying, or extremely deluded.
(iii) He didn’t have in mind any religious community—in which case he was lying, or extremely deluded.
I explore each of these three possibilities below [Options (i), (ii) and (iii)]. The outcome of my analysis is that there is no way to avoid the following conclusion: When Fr Iannuzzi made this statement about himself in 2005 and again in 2006, he was either lying or extremely deluded. It is hard to see how the reputation of Fr Iannuzzi could recover from this.
Option (i): Fr Iannuzzi was talking about the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”
If Fr Iannuzzi was talking about MHT (the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”) then either he was lying when he made this statement in his 2005 book, or he was extremely deluded when he made this statement in his 2005 book. It is worse than that, because this statement was published 20 years ago, and Fr Iannuzzi has never retracted it. (Indeed, he repeated it again in his 2006 book). So either Fr Iannuzzi has stood by this lie for 20 years, or he has been extremely deluded for 20 years about the ecclesiastical validity/approval of MHT.
In an attempt to defend Fr Iannuzzi, one might claim (a) that Bishop Doerfler is mistaken about Fr Iannuzzi and MHT, (b) that Doerfler is lying about Fr Iannuzzi and MHT or (c) that Doerfler never sent that email to me. But nobody in the right mind is going to believe (a) or (b). As for (c), the reader is free to check with + Doerfler by contacting the Diocese of Marquette. It is hardly in my interest to post a fake email from + Doerfler, given how easy it would be to expose such an email as a fake.
*
Note that I am not the first to uncover this alarming discrepancy between the truth and Fr Iannuzzi’s false claims about “MHT”. The same discovery was made a year ago in March 2024, by Emmett O’Regan, a doctoral student in theology at Trinity College, Dublin. From his biographical statement:
I am currently a Ph.D candidate studying Catholic theology at the Loyola Institute, Trinity College Dublin. I graduated at Queen's University Belfast with a First Class honours degree in Divinity in 2006, where I won the theology prize scholarship offered by the Institute of Theology. I also won the Sean O'Riordan scholarship at the Loyola Institute, Trinity College Dublin in 2019, and graduated with a distinction in a MPhil in Christian Theology in 2022. I also won the Loyola Trust Ph.D scholarship in 2020, and an Irish Research Council postgraduate scholarship in 2022.
O’Regan has two peer-reviewed articles published in Theological Studies (2003, 2004) and a third one in Nova et Vetera (2005).
I paste below an email exchange between O’Regan and Bishop Doerfler. Emmett’s name had been redacted by the time the information reached me, but since receiving it I have confirmed with Emmett that he is the author/recipient and that he’s happy for me to publicize the exchange. The emphases (bold, italic, underlined) are from the original email.
Sent: Saturday, March 16, 2024 12:24 PM
To: Bishop Doerfler <jdoerfler@dioceseofmarquette.org>
Subject: To the Most Reverend John Doerfler, Bishop of MarquetteMarch 16, 2024
· Office of the Bishop
· Most Rev. John F. Doerfler
· Bishop of the Diocese of Marquette
Dear Bishop Doerfler,
I have been listening to Rev. Joseph Iannuzzi, STB, M. Div., STL and STD, Ph.D, as he is a speaker that can be found in many places on the internet, and has various books available. However, his own websites and that of his community lead me to some confusion.
The first website shows a retreat center in your Diocese with the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity in Paradise, MI:
"The Missionaries of the Holy Trinity is an ecclesiastically approved community whose goal is service to Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament and to his most Holy Will. Our Mother House is located in Paradise, MI nestled in 1,000 acres of land, and overlooking the great Lake Superior. We offer public spiritual retreats and seminars on the gift of Living in the Divine Will. Our instructors are theologians that are authorized by the proper ecclesiastical authorities to properly instruct the faithful on the teachings of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta. The spiritual center comprises a large and beautifully hand-crafted wooden chapel with the Blessed Sacrament that is dedicated to the Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, a spacious two-level dining hall, over 10 retreat houses and over 1,000 acres of peaceful verdure that is perfect for meditating the gift of Living in the Divine Will. All retreatants can explore the endless trails and hermitages in an ambience of quiet and solitude for the advancement of union with God's Will. As a Public Association, our community has received authorization from the local bishop to have the Blessed Sacrament in the chapel and at the housing sites, where there is morning and evening prayer, daily holy hours and Eucharistic Adoration. Mass is celebrated daily and confessions are always available. Our priests and vowed members offer healing services, bible study programs, catechetical instructions, spiritual retreats and advanced courses in Catholic spirituality, mysticism and ecology." (link below)
While it was easy to find where to donate, or to order books, it was impossible to find the retreat center or any information about the community of Priests and lay persons. Nor could information be found on your diocesan website, or the Michigan Catholic Conference website.
Additionally, Rev. Joseph Iannuzzi could not be found on either official website. Is Rev. Iannuzzi a Priest of your diocese, as well as the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity? Can you or your office lead me to the retreat center mentioned? Below are a few links for your review.
https://www.ltdw.org/uploads/2/5/1/5/25153387/newsletter_46.january-may_2014.pdf
(newsletter yearly US $20 or $30 international)
MISSIONARIES OF THE HOLY TRINITY
P.O. BOX 8484
CRANSTON, RI 02920
Website: http://sojmj.com/Trinity/Start.htm
“The Missionaries of the Holy Trinity is a community dedicated to the kingdom of God on earth through Eucharistic adoration, spiritual works and intercessory prayer for priests. The Missionary community is comprised of over 60 priests and hundreds of laypersons…”
Donate page: Donate to
Missionaries Of The Holy Trinity
Living In The Divine Will
LTDW2016
Fr. Iannuzzi's main website: https://www.ltdw.org
Thank you, your Excellency.
You remain in my prayers.
-----------------------------
The response from Bishop Doerfler:
From: Bishop Doerfler <jdoerfler@dioceseofmarquette.org>
Sent: Saturday, March 16, 2024 2:44 PM
To the Most Reverend John Doerfler, Bishop of MarquetteDear:
Greetings in Jesus Christ.
Thank you for writing with your questions.
The information on the website is false, which makes me seriously question the legitimacy of “The Missionaries of the Holy Trinty.” There is no such association in the Diocese of Marquette that either I or my predecessors have approved. Fr. Joseph Ianuzzi is a religious order priest, not a priest of the Diocese of Marquette, and many years ago he served in one of our parishes for a time. Since he is not priest of the Diocese of Marquette, I cannot speak to his current whereabouts or status.
There is a retreat center in the Diocese of Marquette with about 1000 acres near Paradise, Michigan, and it is similar to what is described on the website. However, it is owned and operated by a different association, the Companions of Christ the Lamb. The Companions of Christ the Lamb have received diocesan approval.
I hope that this addresses your questions.
May you have a blessed Holy Week and Easter.
Sincerely in Christ,
+John Doerfler
Most Reverend John F. Doerfler
Bishop of Marquette
1004 Harbor Hills Drive
Marquette, MI 49855
906-227-9115
The behaviour uncovered in this email exchange, and confirmed by my own email exchange with the same Bishop Doerfler, is sickening. It involves Fr Iannuzzi finding a thriving Catholic community and retreat centre (The Companions of Christ the Lamb) in Paradise, Michigan, and falsely advertising it as his own retreat centre (“our Mother House”), all in the name of seeking “God’s Divine Will.” It looks more like he’s imposing his own will onto an unsuspecting group of Catholic priests, brothers and volunteers, whose prayers and obedience—and no doubt their blood, sweat and tears—had built up this community and retreat centre from scratch physically and spiritually over the years. Who does that? What level of entitlement must someone have to even think of doing such a thing? To re-imagine an innocent pre-existing community, re-conceiving it in one’s own image, appropriating it as part of one’s own (imaginary) spiritual empire, and advertising this false image in an online scam, all for the sake of “God’s Divine Will”—never mind what the members of Companions of Christ the Lamb might think about this.
Remember that Bishop Doerfler himself was witness to the false statements linked to in the email exchange. “The information on the website is false … There is a retreat center in the Diocese of Marquette with about 1000 acres near Paradise, Michigan, and it is similar to what is described on the website. However, it is owned and operated by a different association, the Companions of Christ the Lamb. The Companions of Christ the Lamb have received diocesan approval.”
My reaction (nausea) and my discoveries have been confirmed by an email exchange I had with someone connected with the CCL retreat center (he/she shall remain anonymous) [my emphasis in bold]:
There is an awful lot about Fr. Joseph Iannuzzi that is not exactly as he would appear to make it in things he posts and representations he makes. He did serve for a period of time in the Gaylord diocese in Michigan and also in the Marquette Diocese. In the Marquette Diocese, there were some struggles with parishioners. Father Iannuzzi has a house in Paradise, Michigan very close to where the Companions of Christ the Lamb have their Rectory and Formation Center. The CCL retreat center is about 16 miles by road to the west from that area. In some of the posts Father Iannuzzi has put online, he seems to imply that he in some way has a relationship with the companions of Christ the Lamb and its retreat facility. That is not the case.
With regard to your personal situation with Father Iannuzzi, several of us have had several experiences here [....] He is very aggressive in defending his reputation when people question his status in the church and that of his organization you mentioned [i.e., the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”].
I pray especially for him every day because, although he is quite a learned person, he is extremely insecure. Even as a mature adult having to reference his musical skills, wrestling skills, etc. Any mature adult should be well beyond needing to do that kind of thing.
This person told me that he/she does not want any further confrontation with Fr Iannuzzi—”Only, just to pray for him and wish him well.”
*
Here are some images from the Companions of Christ the Lamb Facebook page (open to the public):
“Companions of Christ the Lamb” appears in the Official Catholic Directory under “Associations of the Faithful” in the Diocese of Marquette from 2008 onwards (in 2007 it was listed under “Miscellaneous”, which is a bit unfair). From 1996 onwards there are a few priests listed as having a formal connection to CCL. The Companions of Christ the Lamb have received Diocesan approval.
*
Back to the bad news. There is more damning evidence to look at. Remember the P.O. Box advertised in the “About the Author” section in Fr Iannuzzi’s 2006 book? As it turns out, that does not belong to a Joseph Iannuzzi, and it never has. In truth, “P.O. Box 12, Paradise, MI 49768” is the private mailing address of Companions of Christ the Lamb, Inc. This is the private PO Box where the officers of this registered nonprofit (CCL, Inc) receive their business mail. Here are twelve (12) publically available official documents, plus two reliable official websites, to prove this beyond all doubt:
After performing the search here, click on either of the two names (for the same entity) for more information. The Registered Office Mailing Address, and the address given for the 6 officers/directors of the corporation, is PO BOX 12 PARADISE, MI 49768 USA.
https://opencorporates.com/filings/593026621 or click here for the original link to the file at LARA - Corporations Division.
Retrieved from the IRS Tax Exempt Organisation Search.
Retrieved from the IRS Tax Exempt Organisation Search.
Is it possible that Fr Iannuzzi happened to also have access to the same post office box? Surely not. Why would the Companions of Christ the Lamb, Inc, give access to their business PO Box to an outsider? And Fr Iannuzzi is an outsider, as far as this nonprofit is concerned. It is easy to prove this. First go here. Look through the “Key Employees and Officers” immediately displayed at the end of the 2023 section. Do the same for all the years down to 2010. No mention of an “Iannuzzi” in those records. Scroll down further to consult the years 2001-2009, inclusive. For these years you’ll have to open the Form 990s. Look in the sections that mention (i) current officers, directors, trustees and key employees, (ii) former officers, directors, trustees and key employees that received compensation or other benefits and (iii) employees and independent contractors. You will not find a single mention of “Iannuzzi”. Recall also what I found in an earlier post (about 3/4 of the way down the article):
I searched opencorporates.com for “Joseph Iannuzzi” under “officers”. Thirteen items were found, two in Canada, the rest in the US … The only entity associated with Fr Joseph L. Iannuzzi is ASSOCIATION OF PRIESTS, INC. …
I was also able to search for other addresses associated with Joseph Iannuzzi in Michigan (Paradise in particular), based on his known (and publically available) address history. Fr Iannuzzi has been president of Association of Priests, Inc., since its incorporation in 2000. The addresses that he has put down on the Form 990s over the years are as follows:
2000-2005: St Matthews Church, 1773 Blanding Bvd, Jacksonville FL 32210
There is no “Joseph Iannuzzi” in the Official Catholic Directory in these years (see below)
2006: 1016 10th Avenue Menominee MI, 49858 [Holy Spirit Church, Menominee]
This agrees with the data in the Official Catholic Directory (see below)
2007-2014: 20811 Washington Avenue, Onaway MI 49765 [St Paul Church, Onaway]
The OCD lists Rev. Iannuzzi as residing here from 2007-2009, inclusive (see below). In the years 2010 to 2014, Fr Iannuzzi would have been mostly in Rome.
2015-2025: [address redacted], a house in Paradise, MI.
Based on this data, we can find PO Boxes associated with the same Joseph Iannuzzi in Paradise, Michigan (and indeed anywhere in the U.S.). There is a strong association with PO Box 92, Paradise. (To confirm this, search for “PO Box 92 Iannuzzi Paradise”.) But there is no association with PO Box 12, Paradise. (Search for “PO Box 12 Iannuzzi Paradise”.) Unsurprisingly, there is a strong association between PO Box 12 Paradise and the Companions of Christ the Lamb. (Search for “PO Box 12 Companions of Christ the Lamb”. Alternatively, try “Diocese Marquette PO Box 12”). For good measure, consult this page at the Catholic Diocese of Marquette.
Clearly, “PO Box 12, Paradise, MI 49768” has “Companions of Christ the Lamb” written all over it—and the connection goes back to 2001, if not further. In stark contrast, this address has no connection with Joseph Iannuzzi whatsoever, apart from the (obviously false) statement he made in his 2006 book.
By the way, a Google search using the following string ["Companions of Christ the Lamb" "Iannuzzi"] does not return any results apart from
a quote from Fr Iannuzzi’s 2005 book
critical comments on Fr Iannuzzi by Emmett O’Regan
a real estate site that incidentally has the CCL property and Fr Iannuzzi’s property on the same page.
Objection. Could it be that the reference to PO BOX 12, Paradise in the 2006 book is an honest mistake—a misprint?
Response. We know that it is not, for these reasons:
It is highly unlikely that an honest mistake would connect Fr Iannuzzi with the Companions of Christ the Lamb retreat centre so conveniently—that a misprint would just happen to fit in with and confirm Iannuzzi’s intended narrative.
Fr Iannuzzi was not connected with PO BOX 92 until 2009 at the earliest (see the whitepages.com).
Fr Iannuzzi does not publicise PO BOX 92. He has never given PO BOX 92 Paradise as an address to send order forms and/or cheques to. The address consistently associated with his “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” fund/fraud is PO BOX 223 Onaway (also in Michigan).
It would be easy to fix a misprint in the electronic version of the book.
It’s unlikely that a misprint like this would go unnoticed. Keep in mind that the addition of the PO BOX in place of an email address is the only difference between the 2005 and 2006 versions of the “About the Author” section in the two books.
There are other addresses that Fr Iannuzzi could have used legitimately in 2005 and 2006.
Objection. Perhaps the Companions of Christ the Lamb allowed Fr Iannuzzi to write down the CCL PO BOX as his own mailing address. Perhaps they were happy to receive mail on his behalf. Perhaps they gave him permission to write their PO BOX down as if it were his own. Perhaps they even gave him permission to do this in his 2006 book.
Response: Some of that might be credible if Fr Iannuzzi had some sort of relationship with the CCL. But the situation is quite the opposite. For Fr Iannuzzi was either lying about his relationship with the CCL, or he was extremely deluded about it—this much has already been established, but more evidence and arguments will be provided below (and keep in mind that the CCL do not want to have anything to do with Fr Iannuzzi.)
There is no way to avoid the shocking conclusion: Fr Iannuzzi had the audacity to write down the private PO BOX of the Companions of Christ the Lamb and present this mailing address as his own, in order to give his readers the impression that he had some relationship with the CCL. What sort of person behaves like this? This is not an unfortunate mistake made in the heat of the moment, but a calculated decision.
Image source: medium.com.
You have to ask yourself: Is this a priest we can trust? Is it wise to be taking theological instruction or pastoral/spiritual guidance from someone who is willing to go to these lengths to get what he wants and bring his own designs to fruition? Indeed, does anyone really want the Divine Will movement to be associated with a “champion” and “leader” who acts like this? If Fr Iannuzzi is allowed to remain in his prominent role, and people in the Divine Will movement continue on as if everything is fine in Divine Will Land (because “nobody’s perfect”, after all), what message does that send? How would this look to a rational outsider?
Let me be clear: the damning evidence that I’ve uncovered here—the two emails from Bishop Doerfler, the paragraph from the “About the Author” section in two of Fr Iannuzzi’s books, the false mailing address given in the 2006 book, Fr Iannuzzi’s deceptive “appropriation” of the CCL retreat centre to suit his own fantastic narrative about himself and his ministry—none of this is hypothetical. It makes no difference whether, in that all-important statement of his (first in his 2005 book, again in his 2006 book), Fr Iannuzzi had the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity in mind (first option), some other religious community in mind (second option) or no religious community in mind (third option). These facts are now written down in permanent ink. They remain on the page, even as our investigation moves forward.
Checking with the Official Catholic Directory
In his email response to me, Bishop Doefler kindly pointed me toward the Official Catholic Directory.
For information regarding any religious communities that have been approved by the Church, I would recommend that you consult the Official Catholic Directory: https://officialcatholicdirectory.com/OCD/home
On the “about us” page (https://officialcatholicdirectory.com/OCD/about-us) the OCD is described as follows:
The Official Catholic Directory is the most authoritative Catholic reference resource available today. Every edition provides Clergy and Non-Clergy members with the most up-to-date personnel changes, new appointments and assignments, and updated contact information for all 210 (arch) dioceses in the United States and the hundreds of (arch) dioceses around the world.
Features Include:
E-mail and website information for Catholic institutions, where available
Thoroughly updated (arch) diocesan entries, confirmed and approved by each (arch) diocese
A map detailing Catholic (arch) diocesan and province boundaries in the United States
Listings for Religious Orders of Men and Women as well as Missionary Activities* and Foreign Missions*
An Index that lists priests alphabetically for easier and faster access
…
*Available in Digital Flipbook format only
Fortunately, the OCD for previous years is open (legally, and for free) for public viewing at www.archive.org. I was especially pleased to discover that the documents have been OCR scanned, so that word searches are possible. Here are the links to 23 currently available editions, starting from 1995:
1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 [the 1997 edition requires you to log in]
2000, [2001-2003 missing], 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, [2017 missing], 2018, 2019
2020, 2021 [more recent editions currently not available at archive.org].
SEARCHING FOR THE MISSIONARIES OF THE HOLY TRINITY
“Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” does not appear at all in any of these 23 editions of the OCD. Each time the search found no results, I made sure the search function was working by searching for “Kennedy”; this gave over 100 accurate results every time. I also tried searching for “Missionaries” to see if any of the highlighted results is part of “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”. In the OCD (all available editions from 1995 onwards) there are only three approved communities (i.e., three communities that appear in the OCD) that begin with “Missionaries of the Holy”. These are: Missionaries of the Holy Spirit, Missionaries of the Holy Family, and Missionaries of the Holy Apostles.
These results confirms the two statements made by Bishop Doerfler:
March 16, 2024 (to Emmett O’Regan): “The information on the website is false, which makes me seriously question the legitimacy of ‘The Missionaries of the Holy Trinty.’ There is no such association in the Diocese of Marquette that either I or my predecessors have approved.”
March 12, 2025 (to Brendan Triffett): “No such community called the ‘Missionaries of the Holy Trinity’ has ever been approved by the Diocese of Marquette, and to the best of my knowledge there is no such community by that name acting without diocesan approval within the Diocese of Marquette.”
SEARCHING FOR FR JOSEPH IANNUZZI
“Iannuzzi” was my search term. There is a Rev Joseph Iannuzzi, O.S.J. listed in the OCD in the years 1998, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 (the years highlighted in blue).
1995-1997
The only “Iannuzzi” listed in the OCD in this period is Deacon William P. Iannuzzi, in the Diocese of Camden.
1998
The 1998 edition, p. 803: Rev Joseph L. Iannuzzi, O.S.J. is located at St Sebastian, an Italian speaking parish in Middletown, Connecticut in the Diocese of Norwich.
On p. 1152: Rev Joseph L. Iannuzzi, O.S.J. is located in Eastern Providence of the Oblates of St. Joseph, Rte. 315, R.D. 4, 18640 in Pittston, Pennsylvania in the Diocese of Scranton. The listed provincial (in the OCD, 1998, p. 1152) is Very Rev. Joseph D. Sibilano, O.S.J.; Rev. Gregory Finn, O.S.J. is 1st Councilor; Rev. Paul A. McDonnell, O.S.J. is 2nd Councilor. [This property is listed as an Oblates of St Joseph seminary here. Rev. Sibilano is currently listed as Priest in Residence, Rev. McDonnell as Rector.]
On p. 1791: Joseph L. Iannuzzi, O.S.J. appears in the list of diocesan and religious priests in the U.S. The year of his ordination is given as 1997.
(On pp. 186, 187 and 190, William P. Iannuzzi is listed as a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Camden.)
1999-2005
I was unable to access years 2001-2003. The only “Iannuzzi” in the OCD in the others years in this period is Deacon William P. Iannuzzi, in the Diocese of Camden.
2006
The 2006 edition, p. 727: Joseph L. Iannuzzi O.S.J. is listed as Temp. Parochial Admin of Holy Redeemer Parish, Menominee, Michigan, in the Diocese of Marquette; and as Temp. Parochial Admin of Holy Spirit Catholic Church, also in Menominee.
On p. 1804, Joseph L. Iannuzzi, O.S.J. appears in the list of diocesan and religious priests in the U.S. The year of his ordination is given as 1997.
(On p. 218, William P. Iannuzzi is listed as a retired permanent deacon in the Diocese of Camden.)
2007-2009
The 2007 edition, pp. 499-500: Joseph Iannuzzi, O.S.J. is listed for St Monica Catholic Church, Afton, Michigan, in the Diocese of Gaylord and as “Admin.” at St. Paul Catholic Church, in Onaway, in the same Diocese (the two locations are 14 miles / 14 min drive apart). He also appears in the list of diocesan and religious priests in the U.S. (p. 1848):
The 2008 edition, pp. 501-502: The same as above. He is included in the list of diocesan and religious priests in the U.S. (p. 1872).
The 2009 edition, pp. 507-508: The same as above. He is included in the list of diocesan and religious priests in the U.S. (p. 1876).
2010-2021
I was unable to access the 2017 edition. For the other years, the only “Iannuzzi” in the OCD is Deacon William P. Iannuzzi, in the Diocese of Camden.
*
Recall once more that Fr Iannuzzi claimed in 2005 that he is a “member of the missionary religious community located in the Diocese of Marquette, MI that enjoys the ecclesiastical approval of his local bishop and the added endorsements of two bishops of the Detroit Diocese.” (He made the same claim again in 2006, but we put that aside for a moment). We have already seen that this contradicts two statements given by the Bishop of Marquette. Another fact to consider here is that in the years 1999, 2000, 2004 and 2005 (I couldn’t access data in the years 2001-2003) Fr Iannuzzi was not recognised as a priest by any bishop or diocese in the entirety of the United States. In these years, according to the Official Catholic Directory, “Joseph Iannuzzi” does not exist as a priest with faculties anywhere in the United States, and he does not exist as a priest in good standing anywhere in the United States.
Another curious thing about this situation is the fact that in 1998 he was listed as recognised priest (in Middletown, CT) and was listed as a resident of the Eastern Providence of the Oblates of St. Joseph (in Pittson, PA). After that, there is no traceable connection between Fr Iannuzzi and the Oblates of St Joseph in the U.S.A.—not even in those years (2006-2009) in which he was serving as a priest in the U.S.A. (Michigan). He is not currently listed in the Directory of Oblates in the U.S.A., and there are no archived versions of this directory in which he is listed—and archive.org goes back as far as December 19, 2013 for this website, with 142 captures in total covering every year between then and now.
*
A statement from Fr Iannuzzi himself in September 2012 sheds light on this situation:
September 2012. Rhodes.
My name is Reverend Joseph Leo Iannuzzi, from Rome, Italy where I’ve been studying for the last twenty one years, interspersed with pastoral assignments abroad. I recently finished a doctoral dissertation at the pontifical university in Rome entitled, “The Operation of the Divine and Human Will in the Writings of the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta – an Inquiry into the Early Ecumenical Councils and Patristic and Scholastic Theology”.
Taken from https://ww3.tlig.org/en/news/fr-joseph-iannuzzi-speaks-on-why-the-tlig-messages-are-so-important/.
The original interview is accessible at https://tligradio.org/library/ (click on “Other Clergy” for the talk given by Fr Iannuzzi in Rhodes 2012). The date given for this talk (toward the end of 2012) is confirmed by the fact that Fr Iannuzzi did complete his doctoral thesis in 2012.
“The last twenty one years” means: from September 1991 to September 2012, give or take a month or two. So we can safely say that Fr Iannuzzi lived in Rome in the years 1992-2012 “interspersed with pastoral assignments abroad” (in his words). From the Official Catholic Directory, we know that the only “pastoral assignments” of his that were recognised by the Church in the U.S. were the ones in 1998 (Middletown, CT), 2006 (Menominee, MI), and 2007-2009 (Onaway, MI).
So how could Fr Iannuzzi truthfully claim in 2005 (or perhaps in 2004 when writing his book on the Antichrist), that he is “member of the missionary religious community located in the Diocese of Marquette, MI that enjoys the ecclesiastical approval of his local bishop”? How could a priest living in Rome at the time be committed to a community located in Paradise, Michigan, in the year prior to his pastoral assignment in the United States, in Menominee, Michigan? Menominee, which is over 200 miles away (a 3.5 hour drive) from Paradise, Michigan? And how could he be committed to that community while also being committed to the Oblates of St Joseph in Rome (we know that, after 1998, he was never recognised as an OSJ of the United States)? And how could he be a committed member of a community in Michigan knowing that he has long-term committments in Rome—not just to the Oblates of St Joseph, but to his ongoing studies in Rome? For just after he announces his membership in this elusive “missionary religious community” in Paradise, Michigan, in the very next paragraph he states that he is “presently completing a dissertation on the writings and doctrines of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta at the Pontifical University of Rome”—and it wouldn’t be until 2012 that this was completed!
Here is that page again, for the reader’s convenience.
THE OSJ PROBLEM
While we’re at it—and I’m not sure why I didn’t notice this earlier—isn’t it bizarre that Fr Iannuzzi didn’t mention his membership in the Oblates of St Joseph anywhere on this page, under the title “About the Author”? (The same point holds for the 2006 book too). To read more about this and other strange omissions from Fr Iannuzzi’s biographical statements, see the Supplement to this post (first two sections). One wonders why Fr Iannuzzi is so careful to skirt about certain historical details in his life, and why he felt the need to “massage” the narrative in certain ways.
*
But let’s get back to our main line of argument. Recall those three possibilities I mentioned before:
Which “missionary religious community” was Fr Iannuzzi talking about when he claimed to be a member of it in 2005 (and 2006)? There are three possibilities:
(i) He was talking about the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity.
(ii) He was talking about some other religious community.
(iii) He didn’t have in mind any religious community.
The facts uncovered in this section—the two statements made by the Bishop of Marquette, the absence of “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” from the Official Catholic Directory in the years 1995-2021, and the absence of “Joseph Iannuzzi” from the Official Catholic Directory in the years 1999-2005—all of this confirms and reinforces the statement I made earlier:
If Fr Iannuzzi was talking about “MHT” (the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”) then either he was lying when he made this statement in his 2005 book, or he was extremely deluded when he made this statement in his 2005 book. It is worse than that, because this statement was published 20 years ago, and Fr Iannuzzi has never retracted it. So either Fr Iannuzzi has stood by this lie for 20 years, or he has been insane or extremely deluded for 20 years about the ecclesiastical validity/approval of “MHT”.
Option (ii): Fr Iannuzzi was talking about some other religious community.
In 2005 (the publication year of the book in which Fr Iannuzzi made his questionable statement) and the year before that (2004), the following information is given in the Official Catholic Directory under “Institutions Located in the Diocese” [pp. 722-23 for the 2004 edition; pp. 725-26 for the 2005 edition]. The relevant subheadings are highlighted in blue; for these sections all the available information is provided below.
INSTITUTIONS LOCATED IN THE DIOCESE
[A] Elementary Interparochial Schools
[B] Endowment Funds
[C] General Hospitals
[D] Homes for the Aged
[E] Convents and Residences of Sisters
[2004, 2005] Provinciliate of the Sisters of St. Paul de Chartres (Marquette)
[2004, 2005] Monastery of the Holy Cross (Iron Mountain)
[F] Retreat Houses
[2004, 2005] Marygrove Retreat Center (Garden City)
[G] Newman Clubs
[H] Miscellaneous
[2004, 2005] St. Vincent De Paul Society (Marquette)
[2004, 2005] Missionaries of the Liturgy (Menominee)
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTES OF MEN REPRESENTED IN THE DIOCESE
[2004, 2005] The Capuchin Friars (Detroit, MI)—O.F.M.Cap.
[2004, 2005] Franciscan Friars (Cincinnati, OH)—O.F.M.
[2005] Jesuit Fathers & Brothers, New England Province—S.J.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTES OF WOMEN REPRESENTED IN THE DIOCESE
[2004, 2005] Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Agnes—C.S.A
[2004, 2005] Discalced Carmelite Nuns—O.C.D.
[2004, 2005] Dominican Sisters [two groups]—O.P.
[2004] Franciscan Clarist Congregation (India)
[2004, 2005] Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity—O.S.F.
[2004, 2005] Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Sisters of Loretto)—I.B.V.M.
[2004, 2005] School Sisters of Notre Dame—S.S.N.D.
[2004, 2005] Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet—C.S.J.
[2004, 2005] Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres—S.P.C.
[2004, 2005] Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary—L.H.M.
[2004, 2005] Sisters of the Precious Blood—C.PP.S.
[2004, 2005] Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis (Peoria, Illinois)—O.S.F.
DIOCESAN CEMETERIES
NECROLOGY
*
Click here to consult the section called “Institutions Located in the Diocese [of Marquette]” in the 2000 edition of the OCD (p. 693). Everything is the same as in 2004, except that in 2000 (1) Missionaries of the Liturgy are not listed, (2) The Franciscan Clarist Congregation (India) is not listed, (3) Sisters of St. Joseph (Concordia, Kansas) are listed and (4) Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception are listed.
*
In the years 2000, 2004 and 2005 there were only 3 religious institutes represented in the Diocese of Marquette of which a Catholic man (adult male) could possibly have been a member, namely: the Capuchin Friars (O.F.M.Cap), the Franciscan Friars (O.F.M.) and the Jesuits (S.J.). The remaining 14 religious institutes represented in the Diocese in these years were (and still are) religious institutes for women. We can safely assume that Fr Iannuzzi did not believe that he was a member of one or more of these religious institutes for women.
Did Fr Iannuzzi believe that he was simultaneously a member of the Oblates of St Joseph and a member of … the Capuchin Friars? The Franciscan Friars? The Jesuits? On top of that, did he honestly believe, for example, (1) that the religious order of the Capuchins “provides solo-wilderness retreats at the CCL (Companions of Christ the Lamb) spiritual center that spans well over 1,000 acres of verdure in the village of Paradise, MI”, (2) that he (Fr Iannuzzi) represents the Detroit Capuchins at the CCL spiritual center and (3) that he is authorised by them to give “solo-wilderness retreats” on their behalf to help people “deepen their union with God’s Divine Will”? Or did he believe, instead, that he was a representative member of the Franciscan Friars from Cincinnati, OH? Or of the Jesuits from the New England Province?
None of these hypothetical possibilities is even minimally plausible. If Fr Iannuzzi honestly believed any of this—especially the part about being an OSJ and a Jesuit / Capuchin / Franciscan simultaneously—then he must have been seriously deluded at the time. Two other facts contradict the claim that Fr Iannuzzi was a member of some other religious community (not the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”, and not the Oblates of St Joseph) in 2004 or 2005. First, Fr Iannuzzi has never mentioned the name of this “other” religious community of which he was/is supposedly a member. Second, Fr Iannuzzi has explicitly associated himself with the “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity” consistently and continually—from 2004, in fact, all the way up to the present. In an earlier post I wrote:
Keep in mind that Fr Iannuzzi has referred to the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity since 2014 (if not earlier). Fr Iannuzzi is listed as a speaker at the 17th Annual Conference of the Saint Thomas Aquinas Society in 2014 in the Diocese of Colorado Springs.
https://stthomasaquinassociety.org/speakers/iannuzzi-joseph-l-father/
https://stthomasaquinassociety.org/conferences/17th-annual-conference/
“Fr. Joseph is the initiator of the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity Community devoted to the advancement of the Church’s mystical tradition and to the proper theological presentation of the mystical gift of Living in Gods Divine Will.” See here.
From this page on Fr Iannuzzi’s website it is clear that Missionaries of the Holy Trinity receives payments for publications and donations.
We know that Fr Iannuzzi has referred to Missionaries of the Holy Trinity Inc since August 31, 2024 at the latest—and indeed, that he publically dated the document in which he refers to this entity as March 7, 2024.
…
Important update to this post …. It turns out that Fr Iannuzzi had already referred to “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity Inc.” in two of his books in 2004 (The Splendor of Creation) and 2005 (Antichrist and the End Times), respectively. So from 2004 onwards he has been receiving payment under this (apparently non-existent) incorporated entity.
There is a further update: “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity Inc.” is referred to in Fr Iannuzzi’s 2006 book (Proper Catholic Perspectives) and in his 2013 thesis publication.
Objection: What if Fr Iannuzzi had in mind the Oblates of St Joseph?
Response: Then he was either lying or deluded about the Oblates of St Joseph, which does not have a presence in Paradise, Michigan, and no such presence can be found from 1998 onwards (see the OCD, and enter https://osjusa.org/about-us/oblates/ into a search at archive.org). Moreoever, if the Oblates of St Joseph were connected with the CCL retreat center, then why didn’t Fr Iannuzzi mention the Oblates by name?
Objection: What if Fr Iannuzzi had in mind the Companions of Christ the Lamb?
Response: Then again, he was either lying or deluded. In the discussion above, there is an abundance of evidence showing that Fr Iannuzzi has never been a member of the CCL. On top of that, all U.S. priests who are connected with he CCL are listed as such in the OCD. Father Iannuzzi is not.
To conclude this section:
There is no way that, in 2004 or 2005, Fr Iannuzzi could have been a member of some “other” religious order (not the Oblates of St Joseph, and not the “MHT”) that was both recognised by the Diocese of Marquette and represented therein.
If in his 2005 statement, Fr Iannuzzi was referring to some “other” religious order, then either he was lying, or he was seriously deluded.
It is far more likely that, when he made his 2005 statement, Fr Iannuzzi had in mind the (non-existent, non-endorsed, non-recognised) “Missionaries of the Holy Trinity”. Assuming, of course, that he had in mind some concrete religious community (real or imaginary) with a name (real or imaginary).
Option (iii): Fr Iannuzzi didn’t have in mind any religious community.
A religious community cannot exist in the abstract. Every religious community is a concrete community, located in time and space, with a name.
If someone says he’s a member of a religious community, but is simply unable to give an answer as to which religious community he has in mind, then it is virtually certain that he is lying. The other possibilities are (i) delusion, (ii) cognitive dysfunction (e.g., severe memory failure) and (iii) there being some valid reason for keeping the identity of the community a secret. We can imagine an historical scenario in which (iii) is relevant (e.g. persecution in China), but this does not apply in Fr Iannuzzi’s case. Nor does (ii) apply.
So if Fr Iannuzzi didn’t have in mind any religious community when he made his statement in 2005 (and again in 2006), then in this case too, he was either lying or he was deluded.
The other possibility is that he did have a religious community in mind (real or imaginary) but was reluctant (rather than unable) to give its name. This of course raises red flags. Why on earth would he be reluctant to give the name of his community, yet willing to announce his membership in that community?
More Red Flags
The passage quoted from the “About the Author” section already raises a number of red flags, even on a first reading. This is further confirmation that something is not right (to say the least). For details, read the last section of the Supplement to this post.
Conclusion
There are six main points to take away from this thorough investigation.
(1) When in 2005 (and again in 2006) Fr Joseph Iannuzzi claimed to be a member of some nameless “missionary religious community” that (i) is connected with the Companions of Christ the Lamb in Paradise, MI and (ii) “enjoys the ecclesiastical approval of his local bishop”, he was either lying or extremely deluded.
We asked which “missionary religious community” Fr Iannuzzi was talking about when he claimed in 2005 (and again in 2006) to be a member. We saw that there are three possibilities:
(i) He was talking about the Missionaries of the Holy Trinity—in which case he was lying, or extremely deluded.
(ii) He was talking about some other religious community—in which case he was lying, or extremely deluded.
(iii) He didn’t have in mind any religious community—in which case he was lying, or extremely deluded.
The outcome is the same in any case. It is hard to see how the reputation of Fr Iannuzzi could recover from this.
(2) The behaviour uncovered in two email exchanges with Bishop Doerfler is sickening. It involves Fr Iannuzzi finding a thriving Catholic community and retreat centre (The Companions of Christ the Lamb), and falsely advertising it as his own retreat centre (“our Mother House”), all in the name of seeking “God’s Divine Will.” Who would do such a thing? To re-imagine an innocent pre-existing community, re-conceiving it in one’s own image, appropriating it as part of one’s own (imaginary) spiritual empire, and advertising this false image in an online scam, all for the sake of “God’s Divine Will”—never mind what the members of Companions of Christ the Lamb might think.
(3) As part of this scheme, Fr Iannuzzi even had the audacity to write down the private PO Box of the Companions of Christ the Lamb and present this mailing address as his own in his 2006 book, in order to give his readers the impression that he had some relationship with the CCL.
(4) We also uncovered some worrying discrepancies and omissions in a number of Fr Iannuzzi’s biographical statements [see the Supplement to this post]. It appears that he didn’t want the audience to know:
the year of his ordination (1997) or the fact that he was called back to Rome just one year after that (1998)
the fact that in 2006 he served in the Diocese of Marquette, at a parish in Menominee, Michigan
the fact that he is a member of the Oblates of St Joseph.
(5) While he has sometimes referred to his membership in the OSJs from 2010 onwards (I found one reference, though it was indirect), there is a consistent pattern of Fr Iannuzzi not referring to himself as OSJ or as in any way connected with the OSJs [see the Supplement to this post]. One notices this pattern in his four latest books (2004, 2005, 2006, and his published thesis in 2013), on his current website, on the older version of his website, and in biographical statements connected with his presentations.
(6) Father’s Iannuzzi’s biographical statement in his 2005 and 2006 books already raises a number of red flags [See the Supplement to this post].
Final Word for Part One
These points—the first three especially—seriously call into question (a) the suitability of Father Joseph Iannuzzi as a theological and spiritual/pastoral leader in the Catholic Church and (b) the prudential judgement of those in the Divine Will movement who might choose to ignore these findings and “continue on as usual”—covering for their leader, expressing their allegiance, continuing to depend on his teaching and guidance, pretending that all is well.
Dr Brendan Triffett
Make sure to:
subscribe (at the bottom of the page) to be notified of the next installment
read the Sneak Preview of: Father Joseph Iannuzzi EXPOSED: Part Two
Quick links to other posts:
Father Joseph Iannuzzi EXPOSED, Part 1
Fr Joseph Iannuzzi, we need answers NOW. The two incorporated entities you refer to DO NOT EXIST*
Namely: “Missionaries of Divine Will, Inc.” and “The Divine Fiat, Inc.”
On Father Joseph Iannuzzi’s Alleged Violations of Academic Integrity
This is the post that got a lot of attention and elicited a slanderous response from Team Iannuzzi
A summary of what I’ve uncovered so far about Fr Iannuzzi and Dr Michael James
My response to Dr Michael James’ false accusations and ad hominem attacks
A brutally honest response to Dr Michael James Farrow—Part 1
In which I demonstrate that Dr Michael James is Michael James Farrow
In response to Michael James Farrow’s latest video on the Divine Will Era channel
Fr Iannuzzi’s curious statement about Admiral Byrd
Following on from the hollow Earth theory post
