Bishop of Arundel Resigns after Admitting Breach of Vows
By Patrick Sawer
A leading Catholic Bishop announced his resignation on Saturday after confessing to being “unfaithful” to his vows, leading to speculation he has had a sexual affair. The Rt Rev Kieran Conry, the bishop of Arundel and Brighton and chairman of the Church’s evangelisation committee in England and Wales, was to make the shock announcement in a letter read to congregations across the diocese at services over the weekend. It immediately led to speculation that Bishop Conry had broken his vow of celibacy, central to the Catholic priesthood. In the statement, being read to congregations on Saturday evening and Sunday morning the Bishop apologised for being "unfaithful to my promises as a Catholic priest". He explained his actions were not illegal and did not involve minors, but apologised to "all to the individuals hurt by my actions" and "all of those inside and outside the diocese who will be shocked, hurt and saddened to hear this". Bishop Conry is known as a leading liberal and moderniser in the church. Earlier this month he said that priests should put up with noisy children to encourage more families to attend regular services. He said it was “dreadful” that in some cases children had been ejected from services for being too noisy. The bishop’s comments came as the Church published research showing that “trivial obstacles” were preventing Catholics “reconnecting” with churches. Bishop Conry said he would not be commenting further on the nature of his unfaithfulness. Cardinal Vincent Nichols, leader of the Catholic church in England and Wales, spoke of his sorrow at Bishop Conry’s resignation. He said: “This is a sad and painful moment. It makes clear that we are always a Church of sinners called to repentance and conversion and in need of God’s mercy. All involved in this situation are much in my prayers today.” Bishop Conry was criticised by conservative churchgoers last year for meeting a group of Catholic homosexuals. He defended the meeting, stating at the time: “I am ... troubled that some people seem to regard sexual morality as a priority and ignore the more basic demands of the gospel. The gospel has little to say about sexual behaviour and a lot more to say about justice and charity.” Bishop Conry was criticised by conservative churchgoers last year for meeting a group of Catholic homosexuals in favour of the ordination of women and gay priests. He defended the meeting with Quest, stating in a letter at the time: “I am ... troubled that some people seem to regard sexual morality as a priority and ignore the more basic demands of the gospel. The gospel has little to say about sexual behaviour and a lot more to say about justice and charity.” One of Bishop Conry’s parishioners, Su Chapman, said his resignation was a great loss. She wrote on Twitter: “Family and friends shocked and saddened. Another priest lost to us. Much loved by the youth of the diocese.”During the Pope’s visit to Britain in 2010 Bishop Conry criticised Westminster Cathedral for using too much Latin in the Mass the Pontiff celebrated there during his visit. He claimed that Martin Baker, the cathedral’s director of music, “chose to ignore” an agreement not to sing large parts of the Mass in Latin (or Greek, in the case of the Kyrie) during the visit. Bishop Conry was educated at All Souls Roman Catholic Primary School, Coventry, and Cotton College (Junior Seminary) in North Staffordshire, before moving to the Venerable English College in Rome to study for the priesthood. He was named the fourth Bishop of Arundel and Brighton by Pope John Paul II in 2001. As Bishop he has frequently criticised what he calls society’s “moral confusion”, stating in one interview “we preach a liberal attitude to relationships and allow the media and commercial interests to prey on our young people, so that they are turned into little adults long before their time. Then we shake our heads in dismay and shame when we learn that we have the highest teenage pregnancy in the EU, six times higher than Holland.” He has also criticised the habit of going to confession regularly, saying that people would always come back saying the same things week after week, leading him to conclude that no interior conversion or repentance was actually taking place. Bishop Conry has stated that the Catholic Church supports civil partnerships, because they give legal protection to couples, including homosexual partners, in matters such as inheritance. But he has questioned the need to apply the term “marriage” to homosexual partnerships, saying that marriage as “the permanent union of a man and a woman” should be protected. There was no reply at Bishop Conry’s home in Pease Pottage, West Sussex. A next door neighbour described him as a “lovely man” and said he lived at the large detached red brick property “by himself most of the time”. Asked about speculation the resigning bishop had been having a relationship, the man said he had “never seen anything like that”. The neighbour, who did not give his name, said Bishop Conry moved in next door to his family around eight years ago. He said he had not seen him at home recently. Around 25 worshippers sat in shocked silence as the statement was read out at St Francis Roman Catholic Church in Brighton, East Sussex. Canon Kieron O'Brown, who led the service, then asked the congregation to pray for the Diocese. He said: "We must all say prayers for the Diocese at this time of uncertainty. "Let me reassure you it is business as usual in the parish and life goes on as ever. "I simply give you that message from the Bishop and commend it to your prayers. He declined to comment following the service. But members of the 25-strong congregation voiced their concerns. Retired cleaner Rosa Hensby, 75, from Brighton, said: "The Bishop's vows should have been sacred and I'm stunned to hear he's broken them somehow. "It's a real shame, but if he feels it's not fit to carry on then that is up to him. "We all looked up to him to lead us in our journeys with God and he has let us down." Another resident, Pat Potter, 85, said she had known the Bishop for 20 years and he was a 'wonderful man'. Mrs Potter said: "We're all at a loss and don't know much about what exactly has been going on. "The statement seems to say he might have have a relationship, but nobody really knows. "Bishop Conry confirmed our two altar boys and has been well loved and respected for years. "Possibly we will find out what he has been up to in due course but it's certainly come as a real shock to everyone, including our church priests." Another parishioner, a grandmother, asked not to be named but said: "The announcement came as a really sudden shock to me. "It will be interesting to know what it's all about and why it's come to a head now - maybe he got a girlfriend and there's a child or something. "It's a real letdown for the Catholic community because he knows what being a priest involves and he should have been able to resist temptation and risen above it."
|
.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.