The Spectacular Fall from Grace of Churchman Once Seen As Breath of Fresh Air

By Edel Kennedy
Irish Independent
February 1, 2014

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/the-spectacular-fall-from-grace-of-churchman-once-seen-as-breath-of-fresh-air-29969601.html

He denied allegations about using prostitutes.

There were also reports of him being arrested in Bangkok, and queries over his purchase of a Dublin apartment

BRENDAN Comiskey didn't just court controversy – he relished it. Loved by the media because of his brazen outspokenness, his comments could make headlines around the world.

He was happy to publicly comment on everything from contraceptives to spanking children, to former colleagues fathering children. And he even spoke in favour of allowing priests to marry.

But behind the public face was a private life – he battled a growing problem with alcoholism and he was failing to deal with sex abuse by several priests within the diocese of Ferns.

And when his facade unravelled, it did so in spectacular fashion with reports and allegations about using prostitutes, being arrested in Bangkok airport, and queries over his personal – and secretive – purchase of a Dublin apartment.

But before details of his private life emerged in the mid-1990s, he was loved by many who saw him as a breath of fresh air.

An estimated 10,000 people lined the streets of Wexford in April 1984 when Comiskey arrived as bishop in the diocese of Ferns. He had a reputation as a bishop who was energetic, articulate, forward-thinking and media friendly. The Co Monaghan-born bishop was even regarded at the time as one of the Catholic Church's best assets in Ireland.

In 1985, when the government introduced a bill that would allow anyone who was at least 18 years old to buy some types of contraceptives, he was among one of the most vocal opponents in the Roman Catholic hierarchy.

He also wasn't shy about giving advice to parents, backing those who disciplined their children with a "cuff on the ear". He said a "whack of the wooden spoon" did not constitute child abuse.

And a decade later, he waded into the celibacy debate, claiming that by allowing priests to marry recruitment would soar. He was rewarded for his comments with a summons to Rome to clarify his position on the topic.

However, it was around this time that things began to unravel for Bishop Comiskey.

His drinking was getting heavier and according to observers, it seemed as if his control over the diocese and his priests became lax.