A priest working in a Little Italy parish was accused of “improper and inappropriate” behavior toward children and women, according to the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Rev. Jose Molina, who was working as a temporary minister at St. Francis of Assisi Parish, allegedly engaged in “improper and inappropriate conversations and communications with minors and adult women,” according to a letter Cardinal Blase Cupich sent Saturday to the St. Francis of Assisi Parish community.
Molina started working at the Chicago parish in August 2025. Cupich has stripped him of his abilities to minister in the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Molina, a priest with the Institute of the Incarnate Word religious order, will return to that order, Cupich said. The archdiocese will cooperate with the order’s investigation, the letter reads.
The archdiocese has reported the allegations to civil authorities and the victims were offered support services, Cupich said.
Molina and Institute of the Incarnate Word could not immediately be reached for comment.