Alberto Cutié

Alberto Cutié
Born	(1969-04-29) April 29, 1969 San Juan, Puerto Rico, US territory
Nationality	United States
Occupation	Priest-in-charge, Church of the Resurrection (Episcopal), Biscayne Park, Miami, Florida
Spouse(s)	Ruhama Buni Canellis

Alberto R. Cutié (born April 29, 1969 in San Juan, Puerto Rico), is an Episcopal cleric better known as Padre Alberto. Cutié was ordained a Catholic priest of the Roman Rite in 1995 and became an internationally recognizable name by hosting television and radio programs.

Cutié left the Catholic Church in May 2009 after publication of photographs showing him embracing a woman at the beach, and his subsequent admission that he was in love. Cutié has said that mandatory celibacy was only one of the theological differences that led him to leave Catholicism for the Episcopal Church. After he requested a leave of absence from his duties in the Archdiocese of Miami, Cutie married Ruhama Buni Canellis, and joined the Episcopal Church. Cutie currently serves as Rector and is involved in pastoral work at an Episcopal parish in Biscayne Park, Miami, Florida. He was received as an Episcopal priest on May 29, 2010.

Media appearances

Cutié, the middle child and son of Cuban exiles, was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. As a teenager he worked as a DJ.

He was ordained as a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Miami (Roman Rite) in 1995, the first ordinand of the then-newly designated Archbishop John Clement Favalora (retired 20 April 2010). As "Father Albert", he was the first priest to host a secular talk show both on radio and television.^{[citation needed]} He is also a regular columnist whose writings appear in many Spanish language newspapers throughout the United States and Latin America. He gained worldwide recognition with his television debut in 1999 as the host of Padre Alberto (and later Cambia tu Vida con el Padre Alberto), a daily talk show televised on the Telemundo network. He later served as host of the weekly program America en Vivo on Telemundo International.^{[citation needed]}

Beginning in 2002, Cutié hosted a weekly talk program called Hablando Claro con el Padre Alberto, reaching millions of households throughout the United States, Canada, Spain and Latin America on EWTN Español, which is part of the global network founded by Mother Angelica. In July 2003 he officiated at Celia Cruz's funeral mass in Miami, Florida.

Cutié also published his first self-help book, Real Life, Real Love (Ama de Verdad, Vive de Verdad) in January 2006. It sold thousands of copies and became a bestseller in the Spanish language market. Cutié's second book, 'Dilemma: A Priest's Struggle with Faith and Love' ('Dilema: La Lucha de un Sacerdote Entre Su Fe y el Amor'), was released on 4 January 2011. The audiobook version in Spanish is being released through Recorded Books, LLC. He has been labelled as "Father Oprah" by various publications. He served as President and General Director of Radio Paz and Radio Peace Catholic 24-hour radio station beginning in January 2001. Padre Alberto hosted several radio programs, such as Al Dia and Linea Directa, and directed the daily operations of Pax Catholic Communications for the Archdiocese of Miami, until the spring of 2009. On April 2, 2009, Cutié was named one of AARP's new Hispanic Ambassadors.^{[citation needed]}

On January 4, 2011, Father Albert released his new candid memoir, Dilemma. With the release of his new book he has appeared on Good Morning America, The View, Fox and Friends, The Joy Behar Show, as well as, several national Spanish language television programs including Don Francisco Presenta, Despierta America and Al Rojo Vivo. While some claim the book is "harsh" on the Catholic Church, Father Cutie has explained that he did not write it with that intention. He has repeatedly said, "This is not an attack on the Church, but a memoir about my personal experiences for 25 years as a young man discerning, preparing and living in the Catholic priesthood".

Personal life

In May 5, 2009, Cutié asked church officials for a time of reflection and a leave of absence from his media programs and pastoral work after publication of pictures in which Albert Cutié was shown kissing Ruhama Buni Canellis at a public beach. As a result, the Catholic Archdiocese of Miami (Roman Rite) granted Father Albert a leave of absence for an undefined period of personal decision making. Cutie chose to continue his ministry as a married priest in The Episcopal Church - part of the Anglican Communion. Cutié asked the Archdiocese of Miami for some time to think and make a decision on where his life as a continuing priest was heading.

In May 11, 2009, Cutié was interviewed by Maggie Rodriguez of CBS' "The Early Show". He said that he was thinking about leaving the Catholic Church for a woman he loves. He said that he respected the existing rule of mandatory celibacy in the Latin-rite of the Catholic Church and acknowledged that some Latin-rite priests remain dedicated to that calling. There are many priests in Communion with the Vatican who are married, but they are not members of the Latin-rite. He stated he did not want to become the "anti-celibacy priest".

In May 13, 2009, Cutié was interviewed by Teresa Rodríguez on the Univision show Aqui y Ahora. Cutie said: "I do regret if my actions hurt people with all my heart", adding "[t]here are other ways to serve God. I am not the same man I was when I entered the seminary 22 years ago." By the end of the month Cutié announced that he had been in the process of discerning entering The Episcopal Church for the last couple of years, which in turn helped him consolidate marriage and his calling to serve God.

In July 11, 2011, Cutié aired his first English-speaking syndicated daytime talk show, Father Albert. The show was produced by Debmar-Mercury, the same company that syndicates South Park and Family Feud.

Reception into the Episcopal Church and Marriage

Father Alberto Cutié was received into the Episcopal Church on May 28, 2009, by the Rt. Reverend Leo Frade, the Cuban-born bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida and became the administrator and pastoral minister of the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Biscayne Park, Miami, Florida, where he was licensed as a pastoral assistant. He was subsequently received as an Episcopal priest and instituted as priest-in-charge of the parish on May 29, 2010.

On June 26, 2009, Cutié and Ruhama Buni Canellis married in a church ceremony at St. Bernard de Clairvaux Church in North Miami Beach. Bishop Frade officiated, assisted by the Rt. Rev. Onell Soto (retired Episcopal Bishop of Venezuela) and several other Episcopal clergy.

Cutié is presently serving as the Priest-in-Charge at the Church of the Resurrection in Biscayne Park, Florida. On November 30, 2010, Mrs. Cutié gave birth to the couple's first child, daughter Camila Victoria Cutié, and with her husband they are also the parents of Christian Norton, from her first marriage. Mrs. Cutié gave birth to a son in May 2012; the boy was named Alberto Felipe Cutié. His father performed the boy's baptism two months later.

External links

• Official website
• Church of the Resurrection official website
• Alberto Cutie on the Internet Movie Database
• Padre Alberto on the Internet Movie Database