A Catholic priest who was suspended from ministry after denying Communion to a lesbian at her mother's funeral said he would have done the same if someone "had shown up in my sacristy drunk, or high on drugs" and criticized the Washington archdiocese for the way it handled the case.

The Rev. Marcel Guarnizo withheld Communion from Barbara Johnson during a Feb. 25 funeral Mass for her mother at the St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Gaithersburg, Md.

---

"I am confident that my own view, that I did the only thing a faithful Catholic priest could do in such an awkward situation, quietly, with no intention to hurt or embarrass, will be upheld," Guarnizo said in a statement released on March 14.

"Ms. Johnson’s circumstances are precisely one of those relations which impede her access to communion according to Catholic teaching," his statement continued. "Ms. Johnson was a guest in our parish, not the arbiter of how sacraments are dispensed in the Catholic Church."

Guarnizo said he would have also denied Communion to a "Quaker, a Lutheran or a Buddhist." Adding that he had also recently lost his mother, he said he didn't "intentionally want or seek to embarrass anyone publicly or increase anyone’s emotional distress during such a difficult time."

Priest who denied Communion to lesbian suspended

Reacting to Guarnizo's comments, Johnson's brother Larry wrote that the statement was "arrogant, repugnant, deceitful."

"My family had finally hoped some sense of peace regarding my mother’s funeral had been achieved and we could finally grieve her loss," Larry Johnson's statement read. "But the reprehensible Fr. Guarnizo has reinforced and confirmed how egregious his conduct was and how repugnant a person he is."

The archdiocese had previously apologized for Guarnizo’s behavior and "lack of pastoral sensitivity." According to CNSNews.com, Guarnizo is a priest of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Moscow, not of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., where he has been practicing his vocation in recent years. On March 9, the Archdiocese of Washington withdrew his “faculties” to administer the sacraments within its jurisdiction.

Guarnizo’s behavior was against the Archdiocese of Washington’s policy, according to a statement issued by officials.

Woman: Priest denied me Communion at mom's funeral because I'm gay

The incident occurred when it came time to hand out bread and wine, Barbara Johnson told msnbc.com. Guarnizo “issued a strong admonition that only Catholics in a state of grace can receive Communion,” she said. “I went up. I was standing next to my mother’s casket and he covered the bowl, and said, ‘I cannot give you Communion because you are with a woman, and in the eyes of the church, that is a sin.’ I stood there with my mouth open in a state of shock for -- I don’t know how long.”

In his statement, Guarnizo said Johnson came into the sacristy with another woman whom she announced as her “lover," but Johnson's brother calls this "an outrageous lie."

"Her revelation was completely unsolicited," the priest said.

In his statement, Guarnizo accused the archdiocese of treating him unfairly, and said "the lack of clarity on this most basic issue puts at risk other priests who wish to serve the Catholic Church in Washington, D.C."

"I am once again deeply saddened by the actions of Father Marcel Guarnizo," Barbara Johnson said in a statement. "At a time when my family should have been allowed to begin our mourning in peace, he has chosen instead to politicize my mother’s death once again, reopening the wounds he inflicted upon our family on February 25th."

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News

• Pension predicament: NY just the latest state to cut benefits
• 'Warming up mighty early' across parts of the US
• Is 14 too young for life in prison? Supreme Court to weigh
• $10 million Degas is latest mystery in Huguette Clarke case
• Debate rages over Mexico 'spillover violence'

Follow US News on msnbc.com on Twitter and Facebook

A Maryland priest who denied communion to a lesbian at her mother's funeral has been placed on leave, according to the Roman Catholic archdiocese.

A letter from an archdiocese official said that the Rev. Marcel Guarnizo was placed on leave for engaging in intimidating behavior, according to NBCWashington.com. The archdiocese had previously apologized for Guarnizo’s behavior.

The letter was read at all Masses this weekend at St. John Neumann, according to The Washington Post. The pastor there, the Rev. Thomas LaHood, said the removal was not related to the communion standoff, but "pertains to actions over the past week or two."  He did not elaborate.

---

 Barbara Johnson, the woman who was denied the communion, had asked the archdiocese to remove the priest.  Johnson’s family says they hope that action will ensure that others will not suffer the same treatment.

Read full report from NBCWashington.com

On Feb. 25, Johnson attended her mom's funeral at the St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Gaithersburg, Md., with her partner.

When it came time to hand out bread and wine, Guarnizo “issued a strong admonition that only Catholics in a state of grace can receive communion,” Johnson told msnbc.com.

“I went up. I was standing next to my mother’s casket and he covered the bowl, and said, ‘I cannot give you communion because you are with a woman, and in the eyes of the church, that is a sin.’ I stood there with my mouth open in a state of shock for – I don’t know how long,” she said.

As the final insult, Guarnizo failed to attend her mother’s burial, Guarnizo said. “When the funeral home director appears, he says, ‘Father Marcel has taken ill. He says he has a migraine and is unable to accompany your mother’s remains to the cemetery.’ This was, for me and my family, his most egregious act.”

The Diocese of Washington sent a letter of apology within days, saying the priest's behavior wasn't correct.

“When questions arise about whether or not an individual should present themselves for communion, it is not the policy of the Archdiocese of Washington to publicly reprimand the person,” the statement said. “Any issues regarding the suitability of an individual to receive communion should be addressed by the priest with that person in a private, pastoral setting.”

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News

• Hurt on the stairs: Child treated every 6 minutes
• New claims about Saudi who left US before 9/11
• Cops: Student planned campus rampage
• Shot by sibling, police officer's daughter dies
• Bison from Canada help repopulate 'Wild West'
• Four missing as fishing boat sinks off Wash. coast

US News on msnbc.com on Twitter and Facebook

Barbara Johnson knew last Saturday, the day of her mother’s funeral, would be difficult. But she and her lesbian partner of 20 years had no idea that the priest at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Gaithersburg, Md., would be a source of her grief.

Johnson, 51, of Washington, D.C, walked into the church, mourning the mom she described to msnbc.com as “a really cool woman; she was 85 going on 58.”

When Johnson and her partner arrived at the church – which her mom had attended, and her dad, too, before he died years prior – they were summoned by Rev. Marcel Guarnizo, a man they were meeting for the first time. He didn’t express his condolences, Johnson said, instead curtly getting down to business.

---

Johnson had painfully written a eulogy; her niece had also penned one. “We only allow one eulogy,” Guarnizo informed them, despite the fact that the church’s music director had told them otherwise, Johnson told msnbc.com. Johnson said she asked her partner to plead with Guarnizo to allow for two while she was called away for her pallbearer duties.

The day, already tense, was about to get significantly worse. Johnson said the priest denied her Communion at her own mother's funeral, telling her he couldn't give it to her because she was gay.

When it came time to hand out bread and wine, Guarnizo “issued a strong admonition that only Catholics in a state of grace can receive Communion,” Johnson told msnbc.com. “I went up. I was standing next to my mother’s casket and he covered the bowl, and said, ‘I cannot give you Communion because you are with a woman, and in the eyes of the church, that is a sin.’ I stood there with my mouth open in a state of shock for – I don’t know how long.”

But he wasn’t finished, Johnson said. Guarnizo had finally agreed to allow two eulogies, but she said family members told her that he proceeded to walk out of the service in the middle of Johnson’s dedication to her mother – something he didn’t do during her niece’s eulogy.

As the final insult, Johnson told msnbc.com, Guarnizo failed to attend her mother’s burial: “When the funeral home director appears, he says, ‘Father Marcel has taken ill. He says he has a migraine and is unable to accompany your mother’s remains to the cemetery.’ This was, for me and my family, his most egregious act.”

The Johnsons now want Guarnizo removed from his post, and are seeking an apology from him.

“You brought your politics, not your God into that Church yesterday, and you will pay dearly on the day of judgment for judging me,” Barbara Johnson wrote in a letter to Guarnizo. “I will pray for your soul, but first I will do everything in my power to see that you are removed from parish life so that you will not be permitted to harm any more families.”

Msnbc.com emailed Guarnizo on Wednesday but did not receive any response from him. Long videos online show him delivering anti-choice speeches, calling abortion clinics “veritable death camps.”

Priest doesn't apologize, but archdiocese does
Johnson, whose story was first reported in The Washington Post, said that Guarnizo has yet to apologize to her family or make any public remarks, but on Tuesday, the Archdiocese of Washington sent Johnson a letter of apology after she spoke with the secretary there.

“In my years as a priest, I have encountered many pastoral situations and know that kindness to those experiencing personal loss is a necessary part of the Church’s call to charity,” said the letter, signed by Rev. Barry Knestout of the archdiocese. “The fact that you did not experience this is a cause of great concern and personal regret to me. It is understandable that you and your family would expect the funeral of your mother to be a time of fond remembrance of her life and comfort from the Church in the midst of family grief.”

The letter apologized for the “lack of pastoral sensitivity.”

Guarnizo’s behavior was against the Archdiocese of Washington’s policy, according to a statement issued by officials.

“When questions arise about whether or not an individual should present themselves for communion, it is not the policy of the Archdiocese of Washington to publicly reprimand the person,” the statement said. “Any issues regarding the suitability of an individual to receive communion should be addressed by the priest with that person in a private, pastoral setting.”

When asked how she identifies herself religiously, Johnson told msnbc.com, “I’m a Catholic. I’m deeply influenced by eastern religion philosophy and the nonviolence of Gandhi and the Dalai Lama along with my church upbringing.”

Her parents worked hard to provide a Catholic school upbringing for her and her siblings.

“I’ve had a very rich and complex relationship with the Catholic church. As an adult, being a lesbian presents conflicts with one’s spirituality. I’ve been fortunate particularly in the last several years – I’ve received Communion every time I’ve gone to church,” she said.

'My mother loved the Catholic Church ... If she loved it, it was good'
For Johnson, however, the Catholic Church and Guarnizo are totally separate.

“It’s very important for everyone to know that my mother loved the Catholic Church. Her life was not celebrated properly; she wasn’t treated with respect by Father Marcel. His actions have turned people. I have gotten email upon email saying, ‘I’m not going back,’ and I say, ‘Please go back, because that man does not represent the Catholic Church.’ My mother loved the Catholic Church, and if she loved it, it was good.”

Johnson said she’s been overwhelmed by the support she has received from elsewhere in the church since the funeral.

“That’s where I’m focusing. Our family’s mission is to heal. The thing that would be required for that, we believe, would be an apology from Father Marcel. We greatly appreciate the apology from the Archdiocese. We also think he needs to be removed from parish life so no one ever has to experience this on the most tragic day of their lives again.”

Gay and lesbian-friendly faith leaders have backed Johnson.

“Shunning a grieving daughter at her mother’s funeral is a heartless act that violates the great commandment Jesus gave us to love God and love our neighbor. When judgment trumps compassion the Gospel is lost. My heart goes out to a lesbian daughter who loved her mom enough to eulogize her while enduring such unfaithful actions,” said Rev. Troy Plummer, executive director of Reconciling Ministries Network with United Methodist Church.

Added Dr. Michael Adee, executive director of More Light Presbyterians: “We grieve that this daughter and her family experienced judgment rather than grace and care. We cannot imagine how a priest or pastor could fail to provide pastoral care during the funeral of a loved one.”

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News

• 'Oh, my God': 911 calls from school shooting
• Romney's ugly Mich. win dulls talk of 'white night'
• Deaths as tornadoes rake Midwest states
• Three missing after Coast Guard helicopter crashes off Alabama