The Archbishop of New Orleans has consecrated a new altar at a Pearl River church after its predecessor was burned amid allegations a priest allegedly recorded himself performing sexual acts on it with two corset-clad dominatrices.
Archbishop Gregory Aymond appeared at Saints Peter and Paul Church to sanctify its new altar on Saturday, having ordered the old one be removed and ritually burned earlier this week.
Aymond also hit out at Rev. Travis Clark’s ‘demonic’ behaviour, following the 37-year-old’s arrest for allegedly hosting a threesome with Mindy Dixon and Melissa Cheng, both professional dominatrices, in the church on September 30.
‘His behavior was obscene. The desecration of this church and the altar is demonic – demonic,’ Aymond said from the pulpit. ‘There is no excuse for what took place here. It is sinful, and it is totally unacceptable.’
Scroll down for video
Archbishop Gregory Aymond appeared at Saints Peter and Paul Church to sanctify its new altar on Saturday, having ordered the old one be removed and ritually burned earlier this week
Aymond also hit out at Rev. Travis Clark’s ‘demonic’ behaviour, following the 37-year-old’s arrest for allegedly hosting a threesome with Mindy Dixon and Melissa Cheng, both professional dominatrices, in the church on September 30
Mindy Dixon, 41, (left) and 23-year-old Melissa Cheng (right) traveled to Pearl River, Louisiana, for the steamy session with Reverend Travis Clark, 37
Aymond also accused Clark of being ‘unfaithful to his vocation’ and violating ‘his commitment to celibacy and also he was using that which was holy to do demonic things.’
The alleged tryst was uncovered when a passerby, who noticed the church’s lights on after hours, peered through a window of the holy building.
The witness saw the scantily clad women in corsets and the priest partially clothed. Stage lighting, sex toys, and a cellphone on a tripod were also said to be on the stage.
The authorities were called and all three people involved were charged with obscenity for engaging in sex in a place open to public view. The altar was reportedly visible through the window.
While condemning Clark’s alleged sexual exploits, Aymond asked the congregation not to judge the church or priesthood as a whole by Clark’s actions.
The Archbishop continued by reiterating the church is a holy place, and said that when it is used for unholy things ‘and has been desecrated, we must drive away the evil spirit, That is what we do today.’
‘This is a new altar,’ he continued. ‘It is a gift from the Archdiocese of New Orleans to remind you how much we care for you and how sorry we are that you had to go through this very, very difficult time.’
Aymond then introduced Rev. Carol Shirima, and said the new pastor will ‘become the father of this family’.
Outside the church, members of the congregation said they would be following Aymond’s urgence to not rush to judgement.
‘I believe one man does not define our Catholic faith. One man doesn’t define our church parish or congregation. We also acknowledge Fr. Travis as a human being. We’re all sinful. We all have our demons we struggle with,’ Steve Fecke told 4WWL.
‘His behavior was obscene. The desecration of this church and the altar is demonic – demonic,’ Aymond said from the pulpit. ‘There is no excuse for what took place here. It is sinful, and it is totally unacceptable’
Rev. Travis Clark (pictured) was arrested after allegedly recording himself in a S&M session on an altar inside a church in Pearl River, Louisiana
A passerby noticed the lights in the Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church (pictured)
Cheng and Dixon (pictured in their mugshots) insist that they were innocent because all parties were adults and the incident too place behind closed doors on private property – and that it was the passerby who looked in who was to blame
In a recorded statement Saturday, Aymond addressed a second scandal that involving local priest Rev. Pat Wattigny, who recently confessed to sexually abusing a minor.
‘Regarding Pat Wattigny, when he informed us of the sexual abuse of a minor, which occurred in December 2013, I immediately removed him from ministry, reported it to civil authorities and made a public announcement,’ he said.
In a recorded statement Saturday, Aymond addressed a second scandal that involving local priest Rev. Pat Wattigny (above), who recently confessed to sexually abusing a minor.
According to Aymond, church officials in February received copies of messages exchanged between Wattigny and a student at Pope John Paul II High School.
They addressed the messages and Wattigny stopped communication.
‘While not sexual in nature, our technology policy forbids this type of communication,’ he added.
But church officials later received a report that communication between Wattigny and the child had resumed.
Wattigny was asked to step down as the high school’s chaplain for violating the technology policy, ordered to undergo a series of psychological exams and attend a 30-day retreat.
It was after a psychological exam that Wattigny admitted to sexually abusing the minor.
‘What has happened concerning Pat Wattingny and Travis Clark is unacceptable, it’s sinful and cannot be tolerated,’ Aymond asserted.
‘Let me be clear, both were removed from ministry immediately and will never serve again in Catholic ministry.’
It’s not clear who arranged the illicit church liaison that ended with Dixon, Cheng and Clark in jail, but it is known that the two domaintrices had traveled to Louisiana and met with the pastor on September 30. Dixon, 41, (left) and Cheng, 23, (right)
Clark was arrested, along with Mindy Dixon, 41, and Melissa Cheng, 23, after they were found in the church the night of September 30.
Despite the obscenity charges, their lawyer told DailyMail.com that Dixon, 41, and Cheng, 23, were not to blame.
‘All parties involved were consenting adults,’ said Bradley Phillips. ‘Everything that occurred took place behind closed doors, on private property, and none of the conduct alleged was criminal in nature.
‘The fact that this involved a priest or took place in a church is completely irrelevant.
‘The only pertinent question is if it took place in view of the public. Clearly that is not the case.
‘The evidence will show that an individual had to enter the church’s private property and look through a window to see what was taking place. By definition, then, it was not in public view.’
Phillips said that it was ‘appalling’ that Dixon and Cheng were ‘being vilified like this’.
He added: ‘I would implore anyone seeking to pass judgement to direct their energy elsewhere.’
Clark, who was suspended, has not commented.
Cheng, arrested alongside her, describes herself as a ‘Chinese/German 5’11 Goddess’ based near Atlanta, but moving back to LA in 2020
Mindy Dixon, based in Seattle, goes by the professional name Lady Vi lives with her husband and their pug
Dixon, based in Seattle, reacted to the news by posting on Twitter a gif of a horned red devil dancing in a sexually suggestive manner, captioned: ‘This is my official f***ing statement.’
On her website Dixon, who lives with her husband and their pug, Lily, goes by the name Lady Vi.
She describes herself as ‘the embodiment of sin exquisitely crafted into flesh and bone’ and promotes her dungeon and S&M catalogue, emphasizing that she does not have sex with her clients, and nor will her clients be allowed to touch her.
‘Come to my flame little moth, feel the heat from my fire and prepare to burn for my affections,’ she writes.
‘I have been told I am an addiction; a disease for which there is no cure. My beauty is intoxicating; taking a sip is not recommended for the faint of heart.
‘I am highly skilled at weaponizing lust and using it to bring men and women to their knees.’
Dixon is also a political activist, championing the rights of sex workers on her Instagram page.
On Twitter, she calls herself: ‘Proprietress of the Church of Satanatrix’.
‘My slaves are my parishioners,’ she writes on Twitter, promoting a video linking to her website, showing a latex-clad Dixon encouraging ‘worship’ of her.
‘Welcome to the congregation, we’ve been expecting you,’ the tagline states.
Her services, in Washington state, are legal.
‘Lady Vi strictly abides by all Washington State Laws and expects her submissives to do the same,’ she states.
Dixon and her husband, at the home they share with Lily the pug in Seattle
The website Nola.com reported that Dixon said on social media that she was traveling to the New Orleans area to ‘defile a house of God’ with another dominatrix.
Cheng, arrested alongside her, describes herself as a ‘Chinese/German 5’11 Goddess’ based near Atlanta, but moving back to LA in 2020.
Over the past 12 months, Cheng has offered her dominatrix services in Detroit, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Los Angeles.
Cheng writes: ‘I have studied the art of Domination for years and it is My greatest passion.
‘I love being able to break a person down, take them apart, then put them back together… My way.
‘Being able to bend men to My will and bring the powerful to their knees is a talent that comes naturally for Me.’
Cheng charges $350 an hour, she says, and provides a list of the fetishes she will accommodate.
‘I also happen to be quite skilled in Martial Arts, taught at home and not in classes starting as a child,’ she writes.
‘Be Warned, I am extremely powerful and flexible.
‘My ability to deliver flying kicks, Spinning kicks, round kicks, side kicks and paddle kicks to My opponents weak, vulnerable areas with unparalleled deadly accuracy.
‘Remember…I was not born with the Sobriquet “Ming The Merciless”‘.
Cheng on her website told how she had learnt martial arts as a child and was ‘extremely powerful and flexible’
Cheng goes by the name Empress Ming for her work as a dominatrix
It’s not clear who arranged the illicit church liaison that ended with Dixon, Cheng and Clark in jail, but it is known that the two domaintrices had traveled to Louisiana and met with the pastor.
Clark was released from jail on a $25,000 bond. Cheng and Dixon posted bonds of $7,500.
All three could face six months to three years in prison if convicted of obscenity.
Church law says that when sacred places are violated they must be ‘repaired by penitential rite’ before they can be used again.
