Kenneth's Story

This web site is has been available for over 3 years and is known to the CMRI and it's leader. They have made no effort to refute any of the facts presented here. "Silence is consent." Since they cannot disprove anything said here, they accept all facts.

This web site is has been available for over5 years and is known to the CMRI and it's leader. They have made no effort to refute any of the facts presented here. "Silence is consent." Since they cannot disprove anything said here, they accept all facts. Additional information has been added to the later sections of this page. There is also an update regarding validity of marriage which sums up this chapter in Kenneth's life.

Having arrived at the Courthouse and finding the appointed Courtroom; much to my surprise I found one of my sons sitting outside the Courtroom door. I sat down near him and asked him what he was doing there and he replied, "Same as you." This son and I have had an uneasy relationship following the divorce. He has a strong temper and can fly out of control when anger takes hold of him. On more than one occasion I have had to leave the area to avoid being physically accosted by him such as when he broke a car windshield with his fist while in a blind anger. A friend who came with me immediately became uneasy and motioned to me to come with him into the Courtroom. I will have more comments on this later in this narrative

On opening the proceedings the judge promised I could make a statement and ask questions, but as happened previously I was denied proper procedure and the right to present my information and questions.

I had a prepared brief statement and 3 questions (to which I already knew the answers). The judge denied my right to present them or to enter the one page document into the record. In the interest of justice, I present that information below:

My family has had a long association with Mark Pivarunas as a trusted spiritual advisor. That relationship changed when my wife and I experienced marital challenges. His advice began to stray away from traditional Roman Catholic teachings, particularly regarding the responsibilities and duties of the spouses. Eventually his marital and legal counseling led my wife away from our home and into divorce court contrary to the laws, procedures, and teachings of the Catholic Church.

All during this time he contended that even with the granting of a civil divorce, we were still married and he would assist in reconciling my wife and I as well as the children. Many years have passed since the divorce decree and he still hasn’t arranged any sort of meeting between him, my wife, and myself. He has been spreading the falsehood that I was abusive. In truth, I was on the receiving end of physical, mental, and verbal attacks. The many messages I send to him on a regular basis are reminders to uphold his promises, first of which is to clean up the mess he made when he destroyed my family.

He lists me as former member of his church. I have never left the Roman Catholic Church. I feel I cannot attend his church until progress is made in cleaning up his messes. He has never written telling me to stay away from him or his churches. He has never written to tell me to cease contacting him, or offer to correct the problems, or to expel me from his church. If he had written telling me I was expelled and to never contact him again, I would have done as asked. Instead I cling to the hope he will do the right thing. I might add that I personally know of several families he has broken up just as he has mine. And others who saved their marriages by seeking counsel elsewhere.

A number of people have suggested to me that the reason he is avoiding me is that he is not really a Catholic Bishop and that fraud may be exposed. Not wanting to believe I have been the victim of fraud, I will now assert my right to ask him three brief questions which might prove these detractors wrong.

1) Historically and to this day, the world recognizes that all bishops of the Roman Catholic Church receive their position from the Vatican. Can you provide the court with a copy of your Vatican issued credentials?

ANSWER: Pivarunas and none of his "clergy" have any legitimate credentials.

None of the CMRI are listed as legitimate in the Official Catholic Directory. https://www.officialcatholicdirectory.com/assets/OCD18_PriestsIndex.pdf

2) Any Roman Catholic religious order, entity, or corporation must have written approval from the bishop of the diocese in which they operate. You operate churches, religious houses, and schools in multiple US states and around the world. Can you provide written documentation of this approval from the recognized Roman Catholic authority in all dioceses in which you operate such as Archbishop George Lucas of Omaha?

ANSWER: He can provide no proof. Fr. Gregory, one of his clergy admitted they are outside of the Catholic Church and have no intention to join the Catholic Church. " It sounds like you want traditional bishops to apply to the non- pope  for permission to consecrate other traditional bishops. Believe you me,  sir- if there was a pope, we’d be applying for permission to do all  kinds of things!"

3) When the Nebraska Attorney General investigated the Catholic Church in Nebraska, he issued subpoenas for records from every Chancery office, religious order, seminary, parish or school that had interaction with children and young adults. Were any of your entities subpoenaed and what records did you provide to the Attorney General's office as part of their investigation?

ANSWER: No CMRI facility or clergy members were included in the investigation conducted by the State of Nebraska. The State of Nebraska sees them as a private corporation and not a Catholic religious entity. https://ago.nebraska.gov/sites/ago.nebraska.gov/files/doc/Report%20of%20Clergy%20Sexual%20Abuse%20-%20November%204%20-%202021.pdf

Since you cannot prove you are a legitimate bishop of the Roman Catholic Church, and apparently no part of your religious order is operating lawfully within any diocese, and since the State of Nebraska does not recognize your entities as a Roman Catholic organizations, I have to believe the assertion that you committed a fraud against me and my family and you are continuing this fraud by attempting to weaponize this court of law against me. I may be an ignorant Nebraska farmer, but today I have learned a valuable lesson about misplaced trust and charlatans.

During Pivarunas' remarks, he pointed out to the judge that my son was present in the courtroom. The judge was not interested in hearing anything about him and moved the proceeding along. It became apparent to me that Pivarunas intended to use my son as a prop to gain sympathy from the judge.

Only two people knew I had asked to be heard in Court. One was advising me on what to say and do in Court. The other was the person who drove me to the Courthouse. Neither of them told anyone about the hearing. There is only one way my son would have found out about the hearing.

My son is an over the road trucker. He had to park his truck and drive at least 4 hours to be at the hearing. The only person who would have the nerve command a person to sideline his business, spend his time and money driving to this hearing and then use him as a tool or prop in the Courtroom had to be Pivarunas.

Further, Pivarunas was well aware of my son's short temper/anger issues. In the past he has used him against me when he needed me diverted by possible violence to my person from this son. I arrived early to the Courtroom. Pivarunas arrived much later, shortly before the hearing started. There was no reason for my son to be there at all, let alone arriving that early. I can surmise that he was directed by Pivarunas to be there well ahead of the hearing in hopes there would be and angry exchange and/or physical altercation. Engineering a blow up between us would have brought Courthouse security in and I would have been in custody. The evil men do....

This entire process has been long and painful. However, it has also been educational. I have had to learn more about the Catholic Faith so I could sort out the lies of the false teachings of Pivarunism. One thing that has emerged regards the validity of the Marriage bond.

My wife once told me that she could get a divorce anytime she wanted. Pivarunas backed this up once by stating, "She can get a divorce, but you 're not really divorced." Later he said that I was lying by recalling he had made this statement. About a week later he admitted he had stated it and basically telling me not to remind him of the statement. This of course goes against Catholic teaching and legal process and exhibits a complete lack of understanding of the Catholic Faith.

Two stubborn people can be together a long time. At some point the stubborn wears out and the desire to get out takes hold. If the marriage is not valid, there are no blessings which aid the parties to make the marriage work. During a marriage counseling session with Pivarunas, it was asked if we were validly married. My spouse had reservations. I truly believed we were married. Pivarunas' answer was that anyone married as long as we have been...has to have been validly married.

In my ignorance and at that time blinded by the CMRI fraud, I accepted this comment and continued on. However, the Catholic Church does not recognize this as a valid reason. The Catholic Church is very careful in preparation for marriage, examining documents and the parties state of mind as well as thoughtful discussion of many topics regarding marital life. The modern Catholic Church even has the parties take a compatibility survey to identify areas of concern. The waiting period is meant for examination and discernment as well as education.

There is a process to examine the question of marriage validity. One man making a snap remark is not the definitive answer to such a serious question. The church has an exhaustive legal proceeding to examine the marital bond. The CMRI and any other group that has left the Church does not have this legal framework, nor the authority to render a decision.

A close friend once told me that my wife had made the statement about why she agreed to marry me, "I did what was expected of me." Another time she had told one of her close friends, "I can get out of this marriage whenever I want to." The question of marriage validity started to bother me. Was she coerced by her parents or societal expectations? Was I the most promising option simply because my family had more money or land than the very few other suitors available in her small Traditional Catholic circle? Did she have the proper intention when she said her vows? After wrestling with this question for several years, a friend convinced me to have the Catholic Church examine the marriage and determine the actual status. I learned things about myself and my former wife in the process.

I began the process and the Church rendered a decision. Click here for all of the legal documents and the decision.

There are many reason why a couple could have their marriage annulled. This examination procedure is required prior to seeking a divorce. It is also a good place to find peace of mind if either of you has reservations. Were all of the blessings of the Church gifted to you to help you fully embrace and live the marital state?

If there are defects, the Catholic Church has a process to remedy the defects and bring your marriage into full communion with the Church. Some places call this process "Normalization" and it begins with the Catholic Priest in your local parish or the Chancery Office with the Diocese. The process is not difficult, but will bring your marriage our of a potential state of sin and back within the blessings of the Catholic Church.

There are three main reasons for which the Church may find a marriage null:

Lack of capacity can be an impediment such as a previous valid marriage in which the other party is still alive, insufficient age, inability to perform the marital act, or close relationship forbidden by the Church.

Lack of consent could be the incorrect understanding of what marriage is, such as not accepting the the bond is life long or that the relationship is exclusive. Refusing to engage in procreative marital relations or coercion of either party.

Lack of form generally relates to the Canon Law of the Church. A Catholic must be married by a valid minister of the Catholic church unless they have received a dispensation from the Bishop of the diocese. A traveling priest who does not have faculties or the specific permission of the Bishop of a diocese cannot witness any marriage and they are automatically invalid. Such is the case of all Sedevacantist weddings that I am aware of. Thousands of couples who think they are doing the right thing, but are in fact committing the sin of fornication thinking they are preparing themselves a higher place in heaven by producing children. (A Mormon notion promoted in some sedevacantist groups.)