Priest who fathered child prompts celibacy debate

[emad]

Angelique Chrisafis
Thursday January 19, 2006
The Guardian


The Catholic Church in Ireland faced calls for an open debate on the compulsory celibacy of priests yesterday after a 73-year-old curate retired when it emerged he had fathered a child.

The priest was based in a rural parish in County Galway. His 31-year-old partner gave birth late last year and the couple plan to raise the child together. The bishop of Clonfert said he had spoken to the priest and his partner and the case was now "a private matter".

Parishioners expressed sadness but said Ireland, after years of church scandals, was no longer so shocked when such cases emerged.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/religion/Story/0,,1689730,00.html

[TechBear_Seattle]

1. Mind you, if his 31 year old partner had been a man....

All hell would have broken out and it would a "scandal" that was no "private matter" dealing with the question of celebacy.

[rurallib]

2. When I was in high school one of the priests on the staff left the

priesthood to marry the mother of his three kids. He quit taking out the high school girls then also.

[Maat]

3. That was nice of him (HeeHee).

To quit taking out the local high school girls, I mean.

Oops, there goes my warped sense of humor.

[Boojatta]

4. He's 73 now. Does he expect to live long enough to raise the child?

[Inland]

5. But there's not debate on one point. He wasn't celibate. nt

[FM Arouet666]

6. Lets see, he is 73 and she is 31

I guess that 73 year old case of blue balls drove him to it. I agree with the poster above, if it had been a 31 year old named Brian, all hell would have broke loose. Sin is sin, unless you have a particular political agenda to push.