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	Catholic Priest Quits Church As He Admits Fathering Child Father Peter McDonough, a Catholic Priest, Confessed from the Pulpit of His Church in Manchester That He Was the Father of a Four-Year-Old Boy - and Then Quit the Church. Telegraph August 12, 2009 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/6014277/Catholic-priest-quits-church-as-he-admits-fathering-child.html Father McDonough dropped the bombshell during Sunday mass at St Patrick's church in Collyhurst. He told worshippers that the service would be his last. It is thought the boy's mother is not a member of St Patrick's congregation but met Fr McDonough through his church work. Father McDonough, 54, who is deaf, made the revelation after performing a sign language mass. At the end of the service he asked parishioners to sit down before delivering the devastating news. He stayed behind for two hours after mass to explain his decision. Monsignor Mark Davies, Salford Roman Catholic Diocese's vicar general, said: "It was with great sadness that the deaf community and the whole Catholic community in Collyhurst learned of Father Peter's decision on Sunday. "Following much reflection and many conversations with his bishop, Father Peter McDonough has reached this personal decision. "The outstanding work of St Joseph's Mission to Deaf People to which Father Peter dedicated so many years of his priestly life will continue to be fully supported by the Salford Diocese." The vicar general added that Father McDonough, who had been at St Joseph's for 27 years, had met with the bishop several times to discuss his future. He said: "Father McDonough has left the church and is now taking time to consider what to do next. He wants to take responsibility for the child and he needs to look for full-time employment. "It was very much his decision. He finished on Sunday and he is looking at his life." A spokesman for the diocese said Father McDonough did not want to comment. James Kenny, 85, who has lived near St Patrick's church for 52 years, said: "This will come as a big shock to everyone. He's let down the Catholic community. "People are confessing to him - I've confessed to him - and he's been carrying this big secret. What faith can you have in someone like that when it's not say as I do but do as I say? "He's been here for years and should have done this as soon as he knew about the child." Another resident who had been a member of the church for a number of years said: "I am extremely surprised. He always came across as very pious and very proper and as a very good priest. "I thought he was devoted to his religion and devoted to his calling. I am very disappointed." Mum of three Kathleen Maguire, 40, whose children attend the neighbouring St Patrick's RC Primary School, said: "He seemed like a nice man. Priests are human beings too. I don't think it's right that they're not allowed to marry and have kids just like the rest of us." Father McDonough was the director of St Joseph's Mission, based in Collyhurst. He held sign language masses at nearby St Patrick's Church every Sunday morning. They were attended by up to 70 deaf people and some hearing parishioners. The priest, who has been deaf since he was three, joined St Joseph's from a parish in Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, after spending a year in Dublin studying a diploma in teaching deaf people. He had also studied at Salford College and Sheffield University. He holds an MA in Deaf Studies from Durham University.
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