He’s outta here! From Catholic News Agency:

Miami, Fla., May 28, 2009 / 03:54 pm (CNA).- Father Alberto Cutie, a priest and television host who was well-known in the Miami area, has left the Catholic Church and joined the Episcopal Church. The priest’s change comes after he was photographed kissing a woman on a beach earlier this month.

Fr. Cutie was received into the Episcopal Church today at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Miami.

At a press conference Fr. Cutie thanked God and those in the wider community who have supported him. “Your prayers have truly sustained me at this time of transition in my life. With God’s help, I hope to continue priestly ministry and service in my new spiritual home.”

In an announcement about his leaving the Catholic Church, Fr. Cutie said, “I want to assure you that this journey did not begin a few weeks ago. I have searched my soul and sought after God’s guidance for a long time. I have also spoken to friends in and outside the Episcopal Church about their service to God and the many similarities that exist among the various branches of Christianity, which profess the Catholic faith.”

“I will always love the Catholic Church and all its members. But I want to start today by going into a new family,” Cutie said.

This disappoints me on many levels and makes me wonder about the repercussions of this:

Do people follow him to the Episcopal Church?
What does this say about his commitment to Catholicism?
He talked about some deep soul searching–which I think is a bunch of malarkey–if he didn’t get caught he wouldn’t have been making this move.

What do y’all think?